Yangon Technical University

Department of Mining Engineering

MINE PLANNING AND DESIGN II

GUIDELINES FOR SELECTING A MINING

METHOD

Dr. Ohn Thaik

Professor
Department of Mining Engineering
 OBJECTIVES

 To design an extraction system that is the most

suitable under the actual circumstances.
 Based on both technical and non technical factors,
 Safe operations, max. productivity, min. wasting
time, lowest cost and best product quality.
 General Considerations

 The evaluation and planning of a mining method,

together with a preliminary selection of the
equipment, is a task requiring careful study and
consideration.
 Time factor is also important.
 The limitations of shaft dimensions, ventilation
system, etc.
 Necessary to avoid mistakes in the early stages of
mine development.
 Geological Conditions

 The concept of geology: the ore situation in the rock,

the behavior that can be expected of the ore and the
surrounding rock.
 Dip
 Rock Strength
 Span limits
 Dip

 Dip – either steep or flat

 Steep dip – from the angle controlling gravity flow,
about 50 deg to vertical.
 Flat dip – range between horizontal and inclination
of 20 degree.
 Medium dip – range from 20 to 50 deg
Relationship between ore body dips and mining
methods
 Rock Strength

 Rock strength – uniaxial compressive strength

 (Very high, high, medium, low)
 From core sample
 Core samples do give a general geological picture of
the type of rock
 To measure the uniaxial compressive strength of the
rock
 Rock mass classification system
Rock Classification
 Span Limit

 Span limits – rock strength determines the sizes of

the spans that can be excavated, either without
support or with a particular method of support.
 Span is too large – working condition s become
unsafe and caving may occur.
 To counteract potential mishaps, the size of the
underground opening s must be decreased.
 The results of geological mapping and exploration
drilling, complied with other information, usually
suffice to decide between open stoping or a filling
method.
 Ore reserves and Grades

 Ore reserve?
 Cutoff Grade?
 To be a profit
 Borehole logging may show area
with occasional high metal values.
surrounded by scattered sections
with lower grades and by barren
rock.
 Example of Grade and Ore Relation

Case Cutoff grade Avg. grade Ore reserves, mt

A 4.0% 5.5% 500,000
B 1.5% 2.5% 5,000,000
C 0.5% 0.9% 50,000,000
Case A square set mining, combined with labor intensive
vein mining
Case B Cut and fill mining or sublevel stoping mining
Case C Block caving method (with high produtivity and
low operational cost)
 Ore Evaluations

 Determining the value of ore is to multiply the metal content

by the unit price for that mineral.

V=[[(N.c)/100] – S – F][(m – t)/c] – M

V= the value of the curve ore at the surface,$ per ton
N= the market price of the metal, $ per ton of metal
S= the smelter charge, $ per ton of concentrate
F= the freight charge, $ per ton of concentrate
M= the milling cost $ per ton of ore
c = the grade of the concentrate in percentage of metal
m= the grade of the crude ore in percentage of metal
t = the grade of the mill tailing in percentage of metal
 MINING COST AND ORE VALUES

 the anticipated cost of mining exerts a major

influence
 finding the least costly procedure of excavating the
rock
 Depend upon procedure of excavating the rock, the
characteristics and advantages of different mining
methods
 PRODUCTIVITY AND MECHANIZATION

 Choice of mechanization
 To accommodate the new equipment

Considerations factors
a) Machine considerations
b) Mine considerations
c) Efficiency consideration
 Machine Considerations

 Capacity
 The largest possible units
 limitations to the choice
 Effectively utilization
 Different level
 One location to another
 Mine Considerations

 operating machines with as few and as short

interruptions as possible
 Mobile equipment can shuttle from one location to
another.
 Large volume of work – a few location – Less mobile
 Room and pillar mining
- allowing complete mechanization
- the best possible access to the working locations
• Sublevel caving
- a large number of working faces on the same level
- able to drill, blast and muck without sequencing
these operations in a perfect cycle.
 Block caving
- boulder ad hang ups can disturb the regular flow of ore
 Sublevel stoping
- production operations are concentrated into a few
location (drilling and mucking)
• Room and pillar and sublevel caving have a slight
advantage over block caving and sublevel stoping
• Room and pillar and sublevel caving are integrated with
the production process
• Block caving and sublevel stoping both required extensive
development.
 Efficiency Considerations

Tons per manshift ratio

Method
Normal High

Room and Pillar 30-50 50-70

Sublevel caving 20-40 40-50
Block Caving 15-40 40-50
Sublevel stoping 15-30 30-40
Cut and fill 10-20 30-40
Shrinkage stoping 5-10 10-15
Square set 1-3 -----
 Tons per manshift ratio – as a general characteristic
of the mining method
 Also includes the labor not directly involved in ore
production.
 Equipment capacities are fully utilized.
 Mining Equipment and Production

 Totally dependent upon machines of various types

 Selecting a machine for a given type of work and
matching its capacity to the required output
 A continuous process
 Drilling Equipment

 Fundamental operations – drilling, blasting and removing

the broken rock
• Drilling operation – to produce a hole in the rock
 Loading and Transport Equipment

 Selection of equipment – An integration and optimization

of both loading and transport operations
• Mostly related to the transport distance and the required
capacity
• Capacity – bucket size
• Capacity – transport
distance
• Waiting time must be
included in calculating
the shift capacity
 Choice of Mining Method

 Basic requirements, Safety, low cost of operations and

efficiency
 Possible systems under existing mining, geological and
technical conditions
Relationship between Characteristics of Basic
Factors and Naturally Supports Stoping.
Relationship between Characteristics of Basic
Factors and Artificially Supports Stoping.
Relationship between Characteristics of Basic
Factors and Caved Stopes.
Sublevel Stoping: configuration method in stopes where the
ore is detonated by drilling a fan or parallel; large part of the
ore is removed from the stope as it is being detonated,
leaving open stope
Cut and Fill Stoping
 Square Set Stoping

 A method of stoping in which the walls and back of

the excavation are supported by a system of
interlocking framed timbers (square set). A square
set of timber consists of a vertical post and two
horizontal members set at mutually right angles. The
mining process is slow and only enough ore is
excavated to provide room for installation of each
successive set of timber. The stopes are usually
mined out in floors or horizontal panels, and the sets
of each successive floor are framed into the top of the
preceding floor.
Square Set Stoping
 Stull Stoping

 A common method of to mine vertical ore bodies or

steeply-dipping ore bodies (because the stopes
become long narrow near-vertical spaces.
 A form of stoping used in hard rock mining that uses
systematic or random timbering( “stulls”) placed
between the foot and hanging wall of the vein
Block Caving
Sublevel Caving
Top Slicing
 Basic factors for UG Mining Method

 Shape
 Thickness or orebody
 Nature of contact between orebody and host rock
 Dip angle of orebody
 Disturbances in occurrence of ore body variation in
dip, strike and thickness
 Stability and other physical properties of orebody
 Stability and other physical properties of enclosing
country rocks
 Distribution of ore body
 Mineralogical composition of host rocks
 Value of ore
 Susceptibility of ore to self ignition, oxidation and
packing
 Depth of ore body
 Hydro-geological condition of mining
 Possible disturbances of ground surface and
enclosing country rocks
 Miscellaneous factors