Minerals Engineering 74 (2015) 1–12

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Minerals Engineering
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/mineng

A study of the impact of blast induced conditioning on leaching

performance
Hector Parra a,1, Italo Onederra b,⇑, Simon Michaux c, Laura Kuhar d, Angus McFarlane e, Nicole Chapman d
a
Davey Bickford Latin America, Chile
b
School of Mechanical and Mining Engineering, The University of Queensland, Australia
c
Independent Consultant, Formerly of the JKMRC, University of Queensland, Australia
d
CSIRO Process Science and Engineering, Perth, Western Australia, Australia
e
CSIRO Earth Science and Resource Engineering, Perth, Western Australia, Australia

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: Recent investigations have alluded to possible improvements of ore extraction efficiency by leaching due
Received 14 May 2014 to blast induced fragment conditioning. This paper presents results from a series of controlled blasting
Accepted 22 December 2014 tests supported by blast modelling and statistical analysis to study the effect of conditioning on copper
extraction in laboratory leaching tests. A leachable synthetic material was developed and selected from
19 different preparations. It was possible to control copper grade distributions and provide homogeneous
Keywords: and isotropic characteristics to this material.
Blasting
Combined statistical analysis of four individual controlled blasting tests exhibited no statistical differ-
Fragment conditioning
Leaching
ence in copper extraction between unblasted material and material subjected to a low degree of condi-
Mineral processing tioning. In contrast, the percent copper extraction increased by 0.84% in the intermediate conditioning
zones, which translates to an overall improvement in copper extraction efficiency of 39.7%. Leaching tests
proved that increasing the blast conditioning does not necessarily improve percent copper extraction.
The majority of fractures were generated along grains boundaries and not across the matrix. Therefore,
conditioning may not be able to expose a significant amount of copper particles consistently to signifi-
cantly impact extraction efficiency. In practical terms, the contribution of blast induced conditioning
to leaching performance is in the increased probability of exposing mineral species to leaching paths.
Ó 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction consumption during breakage as well as a potential increase in

Fragment conditioning by blasting can be defined as the alter-
ation of physical properties of the rock after blasting due to the
extent of pre-existent cracks and the creation of new fractures. This
phenomenon can be associated with two processes that take place
at two different scales: macrofracturing and microfracturing. The
former is generated at a scale of centimetres or greater whereas
the latter is produced at scales of microns and millimetres.
This categorisation is far from being absolute and irrefutable as
it depends on the size of the grains in the matrix and the scale of
the phenomenon of interest.
In principle, fragment conditioning is expected to be present at
all stages of mineral processing, providing a reduction in energy
⇑ Corresponding author.
E-mail addresses: hparra@daveybickford.cl (H. Parra), i.onederra@uq.edu.au (I.
Onederra).
1
Formerly of the W.H. Bryan Mining and Geology Research Centre, Sustainable
Minerals Institute, The University of Queensland, Australia.
the permeability and liberation of minerals. Currently, microscopy
and X-ray tomography are the most commonly used techniques
to provide a direct measurement of crack density, extent and orien-
tation of fractures. Nonetheless, the volume of data available for
analysis is limited. Other techniques have been developed and
applied to measure fracturing indirectly; these are based on the
variation of mechanical and elastic properties of fragments and suf-
fer from the same restriction as the microscopy techniques because
they also have a limited application in terms of sampling volumes.
With regards to the classification of fractures in rock, three
types have been identified in literature: intergranular, transgranu-
lar and intragranular (Åkesson et al., 2004; Muñoz et al., 2007).
Intergranular fractures form along grain boundaries, transgranular
fractures can cross multiple mineral grains and intragranular frac-
tures are generated inside the grains.
Many studies have established that there is a direct relationship
between stress induced by blasting and the extent of microfractur-
ing generated inside the fragments. The stress intensity and

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.mineng.2014.12.032
0892-6875/Ó 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
2 H. Parra et al. / Minerals Engineering 74 (2015) 1–12

direction (Liu et al., 2006) are not the only aspects that affect frag- fragment size distribution and other comminution stages. A meth-
ment conditioning; loading rate has also been shown to play an odology that allows an estimation of the extent of conditioning and
important role, particularly on the length of fractures (Chertkov, an approach to scale up the phenomenon to production scales is
1987; Liu et al., 2006). also required. This section describes the research methodology
Authors such as Rossmanith et al. (1997), Rathore and Bhandari adopted which involved three stages of experimental work, model-
(2007) and Katsabanis et al. (2008) have demonstrated that frac- ling and statistical analysis:
turing can be partially controlled through the application of suit-
able blast design parameters such as type of explosive, energy  Stage 1, a leachable synthetic material was developed. A num-
distribution and timing. ber of preparations using different grouts and additives were
Although much has been learned from this experimental work, cast and tested to verify whether they matched physical
no link has been established with advanced modelling techniques requirements for controlled blasting tests. The use of a synthetic
to enable evaluations at scales used in production environments. material was a necessary step to enable greater control over
In addition, despite several authors such as Kojovic et al. (1995) strength homogeneity, blast induced stress propagation and
and Michaux and Djordjevic (2005) proving the positive impact of boundary conditions.
blast induced fracturing on comminution, there is a limited under-  Stage 2 comprised the blast of a preliminary sample (P0) using
standing about the influence of this phenomenon on the mecha- PETN and was designed as an exploratory test to define final
nisms that govern leaching performance. experimental procedures. This test also allowed the definition
of operational and logistical matters associated with the casting
and blasting of the samples such as curing time, mixer opera-
2. Fragment conditioning and leaching
tion, fragment confinement and sampling. This stage also
helped verify the synthetic material suitability, stress intensity
Leaching performance can be evaluated by measuring three
of the small charge and effect of boundary conditions. Prelimin-
main indicators, namely ore recovery, reagent consumption and
ary modelling was also conducted in this stage and a methodol-
leaching kinetics. These parameters are controlled by several
ogy to define conditioning zones was introduced.
chemical and physical factors. A key parameter to improving total
 Stage 3 comprised two controlled repeatability tests with emul-
percent ore extraction is mineral exposure which defines the
sion charges (E1 and E2). This stage was used to validate the
amount of mineral that is in contact with the lixiviant solution.
experimental procedures and study the potential links between
The main factor contributing to mineral exposure within coarse
fragment conditioning and copper extraction efficiency. Stage 3
particles is fracturing (conditioning) that may be induced by pro-
also comprised a validation phase (tests P1 and P2) where two
cesses such as blasting and comminution.
different spatial configurations were tested to establish the
Leaching kinetics is affected by both chemical and physical
effect of different boundary conditions on the extent of condi-
properties. Chemical factors include solution pH, temperature, min-
tioning. In all these analyses, numerical modelling was used
eralogical species, and ore grade. Physical factors controlling the
to define the conditioning zones and support the grouping of
rate of the leaching process at heap/dump scale are the mineralog-
samples for detailed statistical analysis.
ical structure, the irrigation technique, natural porosity, fragment
size distribution, amount and type of clays, heap height, and satu-
During stages 2 and 3, samples consisting of 10 fragments of at
ration degree. Given similar sized particles, the kinetics at fragment
least 50 g in total were collected. Percent copper extraction was
scale would be enhanced mainly by induced conditioning.
measured for each fragment with the average value for each sam-
Reagent consumption is controlled mainly by chemical aspects
ple being used in the statistical analysis to quantify variations
such as target mineralogical species and impurities as well as sol-
before and after blasting. X-ray tomography was conducted to
vent type. If a greater degree of conditioning could improve only
identify the type of fracturing observed and to support the leaching
targeted mineral exposure without increasing gangue exposure,
performance analysis.
then it is possible that conditioning could also reduce overall
An advanced blast modelling tool (i.e. The Hybrid Stress Blast-
reagent consumption.
ing Model (HSBM)) was available to the authors to support this
Over the years, fragment size distribution has been defined as a
research process. As described by Furtney et al. (2009), the code
key factor influencing leaching performance (Wen et al., 1996;
uses a combination of a continuum numerical technique and dis-
Lwambiyi et al., 2009). Minimal work has been conducted to study
crete element modelling (DEM) to model the complete blasting
the effect of fracturing inside fragments (conditioning) on leaching
process. The near-borehole area is represented using FLAC (an
performance. One such study was conducted by Fribla (2006) who
explicit Lagragian finite difference code), while DEM is used to rep-
incorporated one stage of crushing after blasting samples with dif-
resent the rock mass. The DEM representation uses a lattice-
ferent powder factors. Fribla (2006) identified a close relationship
scheme where the rock matrix is created as a collection of ran-
between powder factor and the generation of micro-fractures for
domly distributed points connected by springs. The theoretical dis-
20  20  20 cm cube samples (using 2 and 4 g PETN – Pentaeryth-
tance between different springs depends on the resolution used for
ritol tentranitrate). The blasted material was crushed and classified
modelling. The key inputs of the model are: detonation parameters
to 100% minus 3/800 and located in leaching columns 10.6 cm in
(i.e. explosive density, velocity of detonation, decoupling, etc.),
diameter and 20 cm high. As shown in Fig. 1, higher micro-fractur-
material properties (i.e. density, unconfined compressive strength,
ing levels correlated positively with higher percent copper recov-
tensile strength, Young’s modulus, etc.) and stress/strength atten-
ery (with 27 days leaching time). Despite the relationship
uation. Further information on the configuration and application
between blast intensity and leachability that was observed, their
of the code can be found in Onederra et al. (2013).
approach was unable to differentiate the effect of increased frac-
ture density from the increased proportion of fines.
4. Development of synthetic material
3. Research methodology
At the early stages in this research it was obvious that it would
To study the impact of blast induced conditioning in leaching be very difficult to obtain natural rock samples that would have
performance it is necessary to eliminate the influence of overall homogenous and isotropic properties and could be shaped to suit
 H. Parra et al. / Minerals Engineering 74 (2015) 1–12 3

Fig. 1. (A) Relationship between amount of PETN (Pentaerythritol tentranitrate) and specific surface; (B) copper leaching kinetics (after (Fribla, 2004)).

the constrained requirements of controlled blasting experiments.
For this reason a synthetic rock-like material was developed, as
has been common practice in fundamental studies of blast damage
and fragmentation (Reichholf, 2003; Iverson et al., 2010 and Sellers
et al., 2010).
Cost, logistics and operational factors, such as procedure and
preparation time were also considered in the development of the
material. The work discussed in this section formed part of the
AMIRA P843A Geometallurgical Mapping and Mine Modelling pro-
ject in which the authors were a principal participant (Amira,
2013).
The selection of a suitable material included the preparation of
19 different materials using four grout types (Alofix, Conbextra
HES, Conbextra GP and Conbextra C) and four additives (food col-
ouring, copper sulphate, iron sulphate and copper powder). Pellets
40 mm in diameter and 10 mm thick were produced (see exam-
ples in Fig. 2).
Criteria used in the selection of synthetic material included:
 Chemical compatibility of additive and grout type.
 Hardness: resistance to handling – not breakable by hand.
 Time required for hardening: 70% of maximum strength
achieved in less than 7 days.
 Ease of preparation: easy to mix – good homogeneity.
 Leachability: percent extraction higher than 5% for 4 + 1 mm
fraction – low variability of extraction values between size
fractions.
 Strength: unconfined compressive strength (UCS) greater than
50 MPa.
 Density: between 2.0 and 3.0 g/cm3.
colouring
Based on the above criteria, copper powder was selected as the
best additive as it was most benign in its reaction with the grouting
and its extraction efficiency from the grouting could be measured
accurately using a well-defined leach. Alofix grout was discarded
as its hardening time exceeded the 7 day limit. This limit was
defined so as to minimise disruptions in the experimental plan
and to complete all experimental work within the time frame of
the project. It was difficult to obtain a homogeneous mixture and
thus an even distribution of grade using the Conbextra HES due
to its relatively high content of coarse particles and the material
was therefore discarded. Conbextra C showed significant differ-
ences in UCS as samples made with screened aggregate (screening
was conducted to remove coarse material that could result in the
formation of an inhomogeneous final product) were approximately
twice as strong as the ‘‘unscreened’’ samples, at 79 and 39 MPa on
average, respectively. In the case of Conbextra GP, screening did
not affect the mechanical properties of the samples and consistent
UCS values resulted ranging from 58 MPa (screened) to 61 MPa
(unscreened). In terms of leaching performance, Conbextra C
showed maximum copper recoveries with values as high as 90%
for unscreened and 65% for screened samples. However, Conbextra
GP showed consistent ore recoveries of the order of 65% in both
cases.
Details of the synthetic material development and selection cri-
teria are given in Parra (2014). The final synthetic material selected
in the experimental work was based on a Conbextra cement grout
distributed by Parchem and it is a blend of Portland cement, graded
fillers and chemical additives. The preparation of each batch con-
sisted of 20 kg of Conbextra GP, 400 g of copper powder (size
<63 lm) distributed by Merck (Germany) and 3 litres of water.

dissolved

dissolved

5. Copper leaching tests

CuSO4
CuSO4

FeSO4

FeSO4
coarse

coarse
Plain

Food

The synthetic grouting material was leached using 2 g/L NaCN

Alofix solution (200 mL) in a 250 mL Nalgene bottle. Tests were con-
ducted in a water bath at 25 °C with a shaking speed of 35 rpm
to ensure adequate mixing of the solution whilst avoiding sample
abrasion. Leaching was conducted over 7 days with sampling at
Conbextra HES
days 1, 2, 3, 4 and 7.
The free cyanide concentration was monitored during the lea-
ches by subjecting samples to potentiometric titration against a
Conbextra GP
0.001 M standardised solution of silver nitrate using an automatic
titrator (Metrohm-904 Titrando).
Copper concentrations in the samples were determined by
Conbextra C atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS, Agilent Technologies 400
Series). Samples were diluted, when required, using a Hamilton
Fig. 2. Initial set of synthetic material developed using different grouts and MicroLAB 600 series dual-syringe dilutor with deionised water to
additives (Amira, 2013). suit the calibration range of the set method.
4 H. Parra et al. / Minerals Engineering 74 (2015) 1–12
6. Exploratory experiment
The casting of samples for controlled blasting testing involved
the preparation of several batches of grout poured layer by layer
into a 0.4  0.55 m drum within a short time period (less than
7 min apart). The preparation of a number of relatively small
batches was to avoid the hardening of the grout during the process
and the potential reduction in heterogeneity during mixing. Den-
sity, UCS, P-wave velocity and copper grade measurements were
performed on eight core samples obtained after the casting pro-
cess. The average density, UCS, P-wave velocity and copper grade
of the core samples from the test were 2.1 g/cm3, 61.7 MPa,
3418 m/s and 1.65% respectively.
In the exploratory experiment, a 28 mm diameter bar was
placed in the centre of the drum to create a borehole. The sample
was left to cure for 10 days before blasting to ensure it reached
its peak strength. After the peak strength had been reached, the
sample was taken to the University of Queensland Experimental
Mine where it was placed inside a 44 gallon drum filled with rub-
ber. This setup was used to contain the material in place after
blasting. The final test configuration including the explosive type
used is given in Fig. 3.
After blasting, the fractured cylinder was prepared for sampling
by cutting and peeling off the drum. Slices were marked every
50 mm from the top and at 45° intervals around the borehole so
that fragments could be collected in a coordinated fashion. Six
sample sets comprising ten fragments were collected from differ-
ent zones around the explosive charge. These were expected to
be affected by different degrees of damage (conditioning) given
by the combined influence of stress intensity and boundary condi-
tions. The position of each sample is depicted in Fig. 4.
Sample sets 1–6 were analysed using X-ray tomography. The
main objective of the measurements on this group of samples
was to verify that blast induced conditioning could be measured
physically and to evaluate preliminary relationships between con-
ditioning and leaching performance. Two samples of indepen-
dently cast material, designated A and B, were used to measure
the initial condition of the material directly.
Each sample consisted of fragments within a narrow size frac-
tion with the objective of minimising the effect of particle size dis-
tribution resulting from non-uniform fragmentation on subsequent
Fig. 3. Configuration of the grout cylinder and explosive charge used in the
exploratory test.
analyses (i.e. leaching). The sample dimensions ranged from
13.2 mm to 19 mm with a minimum total weight of 50 g. It is
important to note that the number of samples tested during this
stage was limited by the costs and time required by the X-ray
tomography scanning as well as by the leaching testing.
One fragment from each one of the eight (two unblasted and six
blasted) samples was analysed using X-ray tomography at a reso-
lution of 9.9 lm/voxel. For each fragment, 21 sections separated by
100 lm in depth were analysed.
It is acknowledged that a single fragment would not be suffi-
cient to reliably quantify the conditioning degree attributed to
each zone in both physical and statistical terms. However, in small
scale blasting, fragment conditioning is not correlated directly with
distance from the explosive charge, as the breakage and damage
process is complex. Boundary conditions have a strong influence
on the stress field generated, particularly in terms of the expected
intensity of stress wave reflections.
Despite the effect of boundary conditions, some characteristic
trends were identified during the analysis. For instance, the major-
ity of the microfractures generated in the fragments corresponded
to transgranular (62%) and intergranular (35%) fractures. Intragran-
ular fractures were not common (3%). A significant number of frac-
tures were associated with the presence of pores. It appears that
the pore structure has an influence on both the direction and
length of the fractures. Simultaneously, the largest grains into
the material matrix seemed to have relevance in the direction of
propagation of fractures. These trends can be observed in the
micrograph shown in Fig. 5.
Before analysing the impact of conditioning on ore recovery
through leaching, it is imperative that a measure of the copper
grade be taken for every sample to ensure that leach recoveries
can be determined. As shown in Fig. 6, results from these initial
copper grade tests indicate that an average grade of 1.24 ± 0.03%
leachable copper was present in the material. Analysis shows that
there is no statistical difference between samples obtained from
different positions or between blasted and unblasted batches.
These results further confirm the uniform distribution of copper
using the casting procedures adopted.
Leaching tests were subsequently conducted and results are
given in Fig. 7. The two unblasted samples display a similar percent
copper extraction after seven days leaching (3.1%). After the same
time period, higher extraction efficiencies were obtained from the
blasted samples. Samples 3, 4 and 5 (5.9%) had the lowest copper
recoveries, whilst the highest extraction efficiencies were achieved
from samples 1 (12.9%) and 2 (12.1%). Sample 6 showed interme-
diate percent copper extraction at approximately 9.2%.
Based on the trends for the time period elapsed, there was no
indication that any of the relative rankings between samples
would change with further leaching time. These preliminary
results indicate that there is an increase in copper extraction effi-
ciency after blasting. This improvement can be attributed to an
increased probability of induced fracturing exposing mineral spe-
cies (i.e. favourable conditioning).
One of the key objectives of applying a modelling tool such as
the HSBM is to better define the expected influence of boundary
conditions on the final breakage patterns or damaged state of the
synthetic sample as well as the potential degree of conditioning
inside fragments after blasting. The application of the model for
conditioning analysis has been previously demonstrated by
Onederra et al. (2013).
The model geometry is built up of point masses distributed in a
non-repeating pattern with a user-specified average separation
between nodes (i.e. model resolution). The resolution for this par-
ticular model was 0.7 cm which corresponds to the size of the
spring connections between point masses. Failure through these
‘‘springs’’ represents the damage zones (Onederra et al., 2013).
 H. Parra et al. / Minerals Engineering 74 (2015) 1–12 5

Fig. 4. Coordinated location of samples collected from the grout cylinder after blasting.

Fig. 6. Average pre-leach copper grades of the eights samples analysed.

Fig. 5. X-ray tomography image of a typical particle used in leaching experiments

(13 mm wide) showing main fracturing trends.

These preliminary experimental results were used to calibrate

the model. Besides the geometry of the sample and the type of
explosive; density, unconfined compressive strength and velocity
of detonation were the material properties used as input into the
model.
Results from this preliminary modelling work are shown in
Fig. 8. Most of the breakage and damage was concentrated in the Fig. 7. Copper extraction results for the eight samples collected for the experi-
mental test.
lower part of the drum while the top remained undamaged. This
matches the results from physical experiments and therefore dem-
onstrates the ability of the HSBM model to replicate actual results. (conditioning) at different depths within the sample P0. A proce-
Failure of individual springs shown in red is seen as a potential dure was implemented to map the density of failed springs to iden-
indicator to quantify conditioning (internal damage) across the tify different conditioning regions. A conditioning index was
sample. Fig. 8 also shows some examples of this internal damage calculated as the ratio between the number of fractures inside
6 H. Parra et al. / Minerals Engineering 74 (2015) 1–12
the rings of the analysis grid and the volume of those rings. Fig. 8
shows the conditioning index which is represented as the number
of fractures per cubic centimetre.
This particular analysis was used to confirm that damage and
conditioning outcomes in controlled blasting at this scale would
be strongly influenced by both the position of the explosive with
respect to free faces and the initiation point. These two parameters
define the shape and intensity of the fracturing generated by prop-
agation and interaction of stresses from the detonation of the
explosive charge. The proposed conditioning zoning provided an
adequate characterisation of internal damage levels in the sample
and matched the results obtained during the experimental test.
The conditioning zoning using the HSBM model was subsequently
adopted as a way of delimiting different conditioning zones which
helped optimise sampling strategies for subsequent tests.
7. Repeatability and validation tests
Fig. 9 shows the experimental setup implemented in tests E1
and E2. The explosive charge is indicated in blue and the uniaxial
accelerometer is shown in red. The charge was placed at the centre
with a reduced borehole diameter (17 mm) to minimise excessive
pulverization and fine fragmentation. Samples were taken from
different depths in the drum from test E1 to check the consistency
of the copper grade as this parameter was crucial for leaching per-
formance comparisons. Analysis showed less than a 0.16% varia-
tion over the depth of the sample and an average of 1.22% of
copper content.
Subsequent validation tests consisted of two configurations (i.e.
P1 and P2). Test P1 followed the same guidelines as for the repeat-
ability tests whilst the explosive charge was placed closer to the
top free face in test P2 to evaluate the influence of free faces on
SECTION 6 SECTION 8 SECTION 10
Depth Depth Depth
250- 300 mm 350- 400 mm 450– 500 mm
Fig. 8. HSBM modelling results showing internal damage and preliminary conditioning zoning within the grout cylinder used in test P0.
the physical results. The experimental setup for both samples can
be seen in Fig. 10. Copper grade analyses were performed on sam-
ples from different depths of drum P1 to verify its uniformity. Test
P1 showed a greater variability in copper content when compared
with Sample E1 analysed previously. However, the grade variabil-
ity measured was still acceptable for the purposes of the investiga-
tion and calculations of leach recoveries were still possible as the
average copper grade in each drum was used to calculate final per-
cent copper extraction. The average copper grade was 1.24% with
minimum and maximum values of 1.17% and 1.32% respectively.
8. Physical results and conditioning modelling
Fig. 11 shows the resulting fracturing from tests E1 and E2 at
the top and at approximately 300 mm depth. Similar overall break-
age patterns were observed with seven major radial fractures run-
ning across the samples. These radial fractures defined the sliced
shape of the biggest fragments. Fig. 12 shows the semi conical
shaped bottom resulting after blasting samples E1 and E2. In both
samples, the solid portion appears to be undamaged and is delim-
ited by the major radial fractures mentioned previously.
As expected, results were markedly different in tests P1 and P2.
Fig. 13 shows that samples from the top of test P1 presented results
consistent with those from the repeatability tests (E1 and E2) where
several major radial fractures were created and ran from top to bot-
tom. In contrast, samples from the top of test P2 were significantly
more fragmented but still showed radial fractures generated from
the centre of the borehole. This increased fracturing occurs because
of the interaction of the stress wave with the top free face. Fig. 14
shows that the results for both tests are similar below a depth of
150 mm. As observed in the repeatability tests and depicted in
Fig. 15, semi conical shaped solid pieces were also present.
 H. Parra et al. / Minerals Engineering 74 (2015) 1–12 7

360 mm 360 mm

17 mm 17 mm

310 mm 300 mm

580 mm 60 mm 580 mm
60 mm

174 mm 174 mm

SAMPLE E1 SAMPLE E2

Fig. 9. Configuration of the two instrumented cylindrical samples using explosive emulsion for the repeatability tests (E1 and E2).

360 mm 360 mm

17 mm 17 mm

205 mm

330 mm 70 mm

580 mm
580 mm
70 mm

174 mm 174 mm

SAMPLE P1 SAMPLE P2

Fig. 10. Configuration of the two instrumented cylindrical samples using PETN for the validation tests (P1 and P2).

Following the approach discussed in the exploratory experi-
ment, conditioning degree was calculated and delineated into
low, intermediate and high conditioning zones. Low conditioning
zones were defined as those zones with 0–0.6 ‘‘fractures’’ (broken
springs in the lattice) per cubic centimetres while intermediate
and high conditioning zones contained 0–6–1.2 and over 1.2 frac-
tures per cubic centimetres.
The values are plotted as iso-contours and are given in Figs. 16
and 17 for the repeatability and validation tests, respectively. It
should be noted that the drill hole did not extend to the bottom.
The grey area represents a zone where no fragments were able to
be recovered and therefore conditioning could not be quantified.
The analysis indicated that no significant differences were found
between the conditioning profiles for tests E1 and E2. The shape
and extent of the high and intermediate zones are similar and
are centred on the explosive charge. The low conditioning zones
are located at the bottom and top of the samples. For samples P1
and P2 in Fig. 17, the position of the explosive in relation to the free
faces seems to play a crucial role in the spatial distribution of the
modelled conditioning. However, the proportion of the low and
8 H. Parra et al. / Minerals Engineering 74 (2015) 1–12

Fig. 11. Major radial fractures in tests E1 and E2 at top and around mid-depth (300 mm down).

Fig. 12. Conical reduced damage zone below the bottom of borehole in tests E1 and E2.

Fig. 13. Top view for tests P1 (left) and P2 (right) showing major radial fractures.

intermediate zones with regard to the total sample area remains for the high conditioning zone of tests P2 as it did not eventuate
almost equal. This trend in spatial distribution cannot be verified in the HSBM output. The analysis of the results indicated that the
 H. Parra et al. / Minerals Engineering 74 (2015) 1–12 9

Fig. 14. Overall lateral breakage for tests P1 (left) and P2 (right).

Fig. 15. Conical shaped bottom for tests P1 (left) and P2 (right).

Fig. 16. Plot of contours of conditioning degree indices for tests E1 and E2.
10 H. Parra et al. / Minerals Engineering 74 (2015) 1–12
Fig. 17. Plot of contours of conditioning degree indices for tests P1 and P2.
HSBM model was very sensitive to the proximity of the charge to
the limits of the sample at this resolution and may constitute a
key limitation of the code. The most probable cause is an inade-
quate interaction between the continuous FLAC grid and the lattice
at the scale used.
9. Statistical analysis of percent copper extraction using
conditioning zoning
For E1, twelve samples originated from the low conditioning
zone while nine belonged to the intermediate conditioning zone.
In E2, two samples were found to be within the low conditioning
zone and the same number originated from the intermediate con-
ditioning zone. These last samples were not included in the
detailed statistical analysis because of the restricted dataset. They
were, however, considered in the analysis of the consolidated data-
set presented in the final analysis of this stage.
Statistical analyses of variances showed that there was no dif-
ference between the percentages of copper recovered before and
after blasting in test E1. Likewise, low and intermediate condition-
ing degrees did not present statistical differences.
In the case of test E2, statistical analysis identified a potential
improvement in copper extraction efficiency in zones subjected
to a moderate level of conditioning (intermediate conditioning
zone) when compared to unblasted material. This enhancement
was not present in the leached fragments within the low condi-
tioning zone. The statistical comparisons were made at a 95% con-
fidence interval for the mean.
A combined analysis of E1 and E2 was consistent and did not
show statistical differences between unblasted and blasted mate-
rial in the low conditioning zones. There was, however, statistically
significant improvement extraction efficiency within the interme-
diate conditioning zone with an average increase in copper leached
of 67.5%.
The dispersion in data increases significantly with degree of
conditioning as shown in Fig. 18. This large dispersion suggests
that greater recoveries may be achievable at higher conditioning
levels. However, inducing preferentially this particular fracturing
condition may be quite difficult to produce in practice.
In test P1, eleven samples belonged to the low conditioning
zone and ten to the intermediate zone. For test P2, no samples
were taken from the low conditioning zone whilst twelve samples
belonged to the intermediate conditioning zone. No significant
improvements in copper extraction were found before and after
blasting in test P1. No statistical analysis could be performed using
the limited percent extraction data from test P2 but data follows
the trends described above. Analysis shows that the variability in
data from test P1 is high and in some cases the efficiency is lower
than the control values for the unblasted material. This situation
suggests that the influence of other parameters such as natural
porosity and ore exposure may play a more significant role in
leaching for this type of material.
As shown in Fig. 19, in terms of percent copper extraction from
the leaching tests, no significant differences were found between
the copper extracted from blasted and unblasted material. The
high variability within the two zones of conditioning suggests that
there is an increased probability of achieving greater percent
extraction depending on whether the type of conditioning is
favourable or not. That is, fractures allow the direct exposure of
the mineral species to the leaching solution.
To understand the importance of ore exposure, X-ray tomog-
raphy was performed on a number of random blasted fragments.
Analysis of the images obtained shows that in many cases,
despite conditioning occurring, the preferential type of fracture
defined by the properties of the material matrix does not
improve access of the leaching reagent to the copper. As shown
in Fig. 20, results indicated low access to the copper embedded
in the matrix of the material, with inter-granular fractures being
more abundant. Note that the exposure is not only dependant on
 H. Parra et al. / Minerals Engineering 74 (2015) 1–12
Fig. 18. Percent copper extraction statistical analysis for tests E1 and E2 combined.
Fig. 19. Percent copper extraction statistical analysis tests for P1 and P2 combined.
11
Fig. 20. X-ray tomography image showing low copper accessibility in test P0.
the presence of fractures but also on the size of the copper that
in this case is significantly finer than the rest of the mineral
grains.
10. Conclusions
A synthetic material was developed and selected from 19 differ-
ent samples. The selection criteria included measures of ease of
preparation, hardness, reactivity, time for hardening, leachability,
density and UCS.
The material selected was a concrete based grout (Conbextra
GP), into which copper powder <63 lm in size was mixed. Physical
tests performed on cores showed that the material was of an aver-
age density of 2.1 g/cm3, had a UCS of 61.7 MPa and a P-wave
velocity of 3418 m/s. Random chemical assays showed an average
copper grade of 1.65% with a minimum and maximum value of
1.6% and 1.69%, respectively.
X-ray tomography analysis performed during an exploratory
experimental stage showed that intergranular fractures were the
most abundant at around 62% occurrence. In contrast, only around
35% and 3% of transgranular and intragranular fractures were
found, respectively.
An advanced numerical blasting model was calibrated and val-
idated with the intention of estimating different levels of damage/
conditioning throughout the samples. This also assisted with the
grouping of the experimental samples for statistical analysis.
The combined analysis of the repeatability tests showed no sta-
tistically significant improvement in copper leached in the low
conditioning zone. In contrast, an increase in 1.0% was recorded
in the intermediate conditioning zone. This extraction value equa-
ted to an improvement of 68% with respect to unblasted material
results. Combined analysis of the validation tests showed that
low and intermediate conditioning did not improve copper extrac-
tion efficiency.
Leaching tests performed on 460 fragments exhibited no statis-
tical difference in percent copper extraction between unblasted
material and material subjected to a low degree of conditioning.
12 H. Parra et al. / Minerals Engineering 74 (2015) 1–12
In contrast, percent copper extraction increased by 0.84% in the
intermediate conditioning zone, which equates to an overall
improvement of 40%.
For the low conditioned material, despite the average percent
extraction values being higher as the degree of conditioning
increased, the variability in data sets did not allow for an identifica-
tion in differences. Some factors which could not be fully controlled
were differences in particle shape and sample representativeness
with respect to the porosity and its textural relationship to copper
grains.
The extraction results and variability of the data can be
explained when one considers leaching to be both a physical and
chemical process that depends on a wide range of factors. Leach
kinetics depend not only on the number of existing fractures or
voids (either natural or induced) but also on the way they are
arranged and interconnected. This exposure defines the suscepti-
bility of the fragments to percolation by the leaching reagent.
Extraction efficiency depends on the amount of ore exposed to
the reagent that may or may not be linked by fractures induced
by blasting at a matrix scale. This trend in breakage will be defined
by the particular properties of the rock such as grain shape, grain
structure, ore occurrence and ore distribution.
In the synthetic material studied, the majority of the fractures
were generated along grain boundaries and not across the matrix,
so conditioning was unable to expose a consistent and significant
amount of copper particles to impact extraction significantly. This
finding suggests that blast induced conditioning may not have a
direct impact on the copper extraction efficiency by leaching. How-
ever, experimental work did show that increases in conditioning
improve the probability of achieving higher extraction rates.
In practical terms, the contribution of blast induced condition-
ing to leaching performance is from the likelihood of conditioning
increasing ore exposure. This is because a larger number of frac-
tures could promote the percolation of reagent across fragments
and the reaction of this lixiviant and the ore of interest.
Further investigations are required to evaluate the ability to con-
trol the degree of conditioning through an improvement in design
and overall blasting technology. An approach supported by
advanced numerical modelling should be considered to scale up
the proposed conditioning zoning approach. Leaching results
showed the need for a standard testing protocol to define the sus-
ceptibility of different rocks to improved leaching after blasting.
This protocol should consider an in-depth analysis of the type of
conditioning induced, as well as the spatial relationship of the pref-
erential breakage patterns with the ore occurrence at a matrix scale.
Finally, it is worth mentioning that the methodology adopted
relates to conditions where the blasted ore goes directly to the
leaching process without passing through comminution stages.
As such, the conclusions originated from this study are more
related to dump leaching processes; and may be extrapolated to
certain applications of in-situ leaching.
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