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A number of impending and actual pit wall failures have been observed and documented, which have been interpreted to initiate on newly generated structural features. This infers failure through intact rock. Failure mechanisms have been postulated resulting from circumferential stress, extensional strain and brittle flexure. These will be discussed in the context of the failures and the associated monitoring. The implications of failure initiating on ?unknown? features has a significant impact for deep open pit mines where designs are based on the expected structural regime. Being able to anticipate such failures is important for design. Equally important is management of such changes as they arise. In this context, monitoring using high resolution microseismic techniques will be discussed as a means of providing early warning of such failures.

Jan 1, 2006

By A. Nkolele

Paper written on project work carried out in partial fulfilment of B. Tech (Metallurgical Engineering) degree Fine coal of the Goedehoop Colliery is dewatered by centrifuging before being sold. Full-scale plant tests were carried out to reduce residual cake moisture by the addition of surfactants. It is believed that by modifying the interface between the coal surface and the adherent surface water, as well as the water occluded in the cake voids, drainage is improved. Two anionic surfactants at concentrations up to 150 g/t were tested on coal of <0.5 mm size. The results demonstrate that quite high additions of surfactant (80 g/t)were needed to reduce moisture from 20 to about 17?18%. It was observed that when increasing surfactant additions at low levels, within a very narrow concentration range, the retained moisture first increased sharply only to decrease sharply immediately thereafter; this effect points to a critical surfactant concentration. Based on the obtained results, the use of surfactants cannot be recommended at this stage; further investigations under more controlled conditions are required.

Jan 1, 2004

By B. Matsetela, S. Amos, V. Nkuna

"The Kamoa-Kakula copper project—a joint venture between Ivanhoe Mines, Zijin Mining Group Co. Ltd, and the government of the Democratic Republic of Congo—has been independently ranked as the world's largest undeveloped high-grade copper discovery by international mining consultant Wood Mackenzie. It is a very large, near-surface stratiform copper deposit with adjacent prospective exploration areas within the Central African Copperbelt, approximately 25 km west of the town of Kolwezi and about 270 km west of the provincial capital of Lubumbashi. A phased development approach is currently envisaged. The first phase of the project involves the development of a 6 Mt/a underground mine and surface processing complex (dual stream concentrator) at the Kakula deposit, a discovery announced in early 2016. The second phase involves an integrated 12 Mt/a two-stage development, beginning with initial production from the Kakula mine, to be followed by a subsequent, separate underground mining operation at the nearby Kansoko mine, along with the construction of a smelter. Project description and locationThe Kamoa–Kakula project comprises a newly discovered, very large stratiform copper deposit with adjacent prospective exploration areas, located within the Central African Copperbelt in Lualaba Province, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The Kamoa–Kakula project lies approximately 25 km west of the town of Kolwezi and about 270 km west of Lubumbashi. Ivanhoe owns a 49.5% share interest in Kamoa Holding, an Ivanhoe subsidiary that currently owns 80% of the project. Zijin Mining owns a 49.5% share interest in Kamoa Holding, which it acquired from Ivanhoe in December 2015 for an aggregate cash consideration of US$412 million. The remaining 1% interest in Kamoa Holding is held by privately-owned Crystal River.The Kamoa–Kakula project consists of the Kamoa exploitation licences (exploitation permits 12873, 13025, and 13026, which cover an area of 397.4 km2) and one exploration licence (exploration permit 703 covering an area of 12.74 km2). The Kamoa exploitation licences, approved 20 August 2012, grant Kamoa Copper the right to explore for, develop, and exploit copper and other minerals, for an initial 30-year term, expiring on 19 August 2042. The permits can then be extended for 15-year periods until the end of the mine’s life."

Nov 1, 2018

By T. V. Nguyen

The feedwell performance in gravity thickeners and clarifiers relies on the efficient mixing between solid particles and flocculant to achieve effective flocculation, as well as energy dissipation of the incoming feed stream. A population balance-computational fluid dynamics (PB-CFD) model has been developed and validated to provide new insights into the operation and performance of industrial feedwells. In particular, the PB-CFD model enables the efficacy of the main functions of a feedwell to be investigated for a wide range of feedwell designs and process conditions. This paper describes how PB-CFD was used in the design and development of a new feedwell concept for the flocculation of particles in a solid-liquid stream. The patented feedwell design includes an upwardly converging flow diverter to create two separate compartments for energy dissipation and flocculation. PB-CFD simulations of this simple and easy-to-retrofit feedwell design illustrate a superior performance in terms of flocculation and energy dissipation compared to typical feedwells over a wide range of flow conditions. The potential benefits include reduced flocculant consumption, better de-aeration, greater stability and the ability to cope with a wider variation in volumetric throughput, better flocculation and fines capture, and a more symmetrical discharge that may also offer improved overflow clarity in some applications. The new feedwell design has been installed in a full-scale thickener at an Anglo American Platinum site in South Africa. A number of operational factors complicate this application, but indications are that the new feedwell has led to improvements in stability and underflow properties.

Jan 1, 2012

Rockbursts continue to be a scourge in the mining industry, being responsible for accidents and damage to mining excavations. Although the problem has been present for more than a century, and although much research has been carried out, a solution is still elusive. Determination of, firstly, the demand on the support system imposed in the rockburst and, secondly, the capacity of the support system, cannot be carried out with any confidence, and therefore rockburst support cannot be designed using a conventional design approach. In contrast with the conventional approach, observations of rockburst damage in a mine have revealed a possible alternative approach to rockburst support ? sacrificial support. It was observed, in rockburst events, that a support system consisting of concrete panels restrained by grouted cables was destroyed, and the concrete panels were ejected. However, the rock behind the panels remained apparently undamaged and in place. This behaviour reignited the concept of sacrificial support, conceived more than 20 years ago, and which is described in this paper. The remedial solution implemented on the mine, involving cables wrapped over the panels and retained by grouting into boreholes, has been subjected to rockburst loading and has confirmed the validity of the sacrificial support concept. The concept of sacrificial support may be controversial, but is deliberately presented here with the aim of generating discussions and contributions, and with the ultimate aim of improving safety and reducing rockburst damage in mines. Keywords rockburst, seismicity, seismic waves, rock support, support design.

Jul 1, 2013

The re-use of waste water from coal preparation plant tailings is always desirable, but is generally problematic in terms of solid-liquid separation. Dewatering and disposal of coal slurry at a high percentage of moisture poses a major technological and environmental challenge to mining and mineral processing industries world-wide. Characterization and flocculation of these coal tailings reveals that the separation of fine coal tailings depends on factors such as size distribution, slurry viscosity, zeta potential, pulp density, circuit design, plant operating parameters, and the behaviour of solid particles in an aqueous medium. The present study was carried out on -600 mm coal tailings collected from a coking coal preparation plant of Jharia Coalfield, India, using anionic flocculent. Characterization studies revealed that the zeta potential was highest (-44 mV) at a pH of 9.0, the size range of the particles was 1.1?700 m, and the average ash content was 62.57%. Flocculation studies were performed at different solid concentrations, pH values, and polymer dosages. The results indicated an efficient settling rate of 178.15 mm/min at 8% solid (w/w) at a flocculent dosage of 32.50 g/t solid. The turbidity of the clear liquid obtained was 7.42 NTU.

Jan 1, 2014

By O. Nyandoro, K. Khoza-Shangase, M. Madahana, N. Moroe

"Occupational noise-induced hearing loss (ONIHL) is classified as the leading work-related disability in the mining industry. ONIHL has a negative impact, on not only the health and occupational productivity of affected individuals, but arguably also on the country’s mining industry and economy. Hearing conservation programmes (HCPs) are an effective strategy in the management of ONIHL. However, current literature indicates that HCPs are not achieving the anticipated and desired outcomes in the South African mining sector despite the efforts focused on the management of ONIHL. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to propose the use of a feedback-based noise monitoring model as a tool for monitoring and managing ONIHL in the South Africa’s mining sector. This model is a basic static feedback model with practical applications such as estimating, monitoring. and providing quantitative information to aid miners, mining administrators, and policy-makers in decision-making around HCPs. Additionally, the model could form part of an early intervention and management strategy for ONIHL in the workplace. The strength of this model, although currently static, is that it encompasses all the pillars of HCPs and takes into account the policies concerned with the management of ONIHL in the mining sector. IntroductionHazardous noise levels (above 85 dBA) in the workplace place exposed employees at risk of developing a disabling occupational noise-induced hearing loss (ONIHL). ONIHL is the ‘partial or complete hearing loss in one or both ears as a result of one’s employment’ (Nandi and Dhatrak, 2008, p. 1). This type of hearing loss develops gradually as a result of being exposed to continuous or intermittent high levels of noise over a long period of time (McBride, 2004; Patel et al., 2010; Rappaport and Provencal, 2001). A hearing threshold below 40 dBs is classified as a disabling hearing loss (Yadav et al., 2015), resulting in a hidden condition that does not readily manifest itself (Tye-Murray, 2009, p. 3). Dugan (2003) describes disabling hearing loss as the ‘most prevalent, least recognized and least understood physical disability’, while Copley and Frederichs (2010) and Hermanus (2007) argue that permanent disabling hearing loss is a major contributor to the global burden of disease on individuals, families, communities, and countries."

Jul 1, 2019

By N. Simpson

Low carbon 11.5% chromium stainless steels are finding increasing use in industry as square or rectangular tubing material for the construction of structures by welding. During processing, resistively welded circular pipes are bent into square or rectangular shapes. During this process longitudinal cracks can sometimes develop atone of the inner corners of the section. An investigation has shown that the processing of round into square tubing with very sharp corners can cause excessive cold working at the inner corners of the squared tube. This, together with the high tensile residual stresses and a susceptible microstructure due to the presence of grain boundary carbides, can result in brittle cleavage cracking. Measures that can be used to reduce the problem are described.

Jan 1, 2003

A Seismic Hazard Scale (SHS) has been developed to provide a practical seismic hazard assessment tool applicable to mine site personnel. It has been applied to seismic data sets from numerous Western Australian mines. The SHS is applicable when quantifying seismic hazard on a mine wide scale, on a mining block scale, and on a local cluster-by-cluster scale. Spatial mapping of variations in seismic hazard is a particularly powerful application of the scale. The SHS is sensitive to temporal increases in seismic hazard. It has also been shown that the SHS can be applied to estimate seismic hazard when seismic monitoring data are not available. The SHS is a simple derivation of the Gutenberg-Richter relation. There are assumptions and limitations to the SHS that need to be considered when applying it to mine seismicity data.

Jan 1, 2004

By E. S. Peters, M. J. van Rensburg, M. Le Roux, Q. P. Campbell

"The demand for energy has continued to rise worldwide in line with population growth. The majority of South Africa’s electricity is supplied by coal-fired power stations. The amount of fine coal (-2 mm) generated at coal processing plants has increased, due mainly to mechanized mining methods. Fine coal retains more water, which lowers its heating value.Drying the coal is costly and it is difficult to achieve the required moisture content. Consequently, coal fines are often discarded. An estimated 8% of the total energy value of mined coal is lost1.Fluidized bed technology is often used to dry coal thermally, but this method is expensive and has an adverse environmental impact. The objective of this study was to investigate the removal of moisture from fine coal (<2 mm) in a fluidized bed operated with dry fluidizing air at moderate temperatures as the drying agent. The effects of different air temperatures and relative humidity levels were investigated in a controlled environment. The study further investigated the influence of coal particle size on moisture removal.The drying rate was found to increase with increasing temperature. The relative humidity of the drying air had a more pronounced effect on the drying rate, even at temperatures as low as 25°C.. It became more challenging to remove moisture as the particle size decreased. The gain in calorific value was greater than the energy required to dry the coal samples, showing that a fluidized bed using moderately warm dry air is an energy-efficient drying technology. The energy efficiency of the fluidized bed compared favourably with other thermal drying methods.Paper written on project work carried out in partial fulfilment of Degree in Chemical Engineering(NWU) - Pursuing Masters in Coal Beneficiation"

Jan 1, 2015

By V. Pawlowsky-Glahn, E. Pardo-Igúzquiza, J. J. Egozcue, R. A. Olea

Compositional data constitutes a special class of quantitative measurements involving parts of a whole. The sample space has an algebraic-geometric structure different from that of real-valued data. A subcomposition is a subset of all possible parts. When compositional data values include geographical locations, they are also regionalized variables. In the Earth sciences, geochemical analyses are a common form of regionalized compositional data. Ordinarily, there are measurements only at data locations. Geostatistics has proven to be the standard for spatial estimation of regionalized variables but, in general, the compositional character of the geochemical data has been ignored. This paper presents in detail an application of cokriging for the modelling of compositional data using a method that is consistent with the compositional character of the data. The uncertainty is evaluated by a Monte Carlo procedure. The method is illustrated for the contents of arsenic and iron in groundwaters in Bangladesh, which have the peculiarity of being measured in milligrams per litre, units for which the sum of all parts does not add to a constant. Practical results include maps of estimates of the geochemical elements in the original concentration units, as well as measures of uncertainty, such as the probability that the concentration may exceed a given threshold. Results indicate that probabilities of exceedance in previous studies of the same data are too low.

Jan 1, 2015

By G. M. Dowo

The widespread environmental damage caused by slimes dam construction requires rehabilitation as one of the key management strategies towards land restoration. From the time when Mhangura Copper Mine in Zimbabwe was shut down in 2000 due to viability problems, no follow-up studies were carried out on the slimes dams to assess their development with respect to ecosystem function and longterm recovery. The ecosystem function analysis (EFA) method was thus employed to achieve this end. EFA is a monitoring procedure that establishes how well an ecosystem functions as a biophysical system through the use of rapidly assessed field indicators. The field procedure makes use of simple visual indicators that are related to various soil surface processes. Conventional sampling methods are used to collect the vegetation data. The data was first analysed using landscape function analysis (LFA) software packages and then with various multivariate statistical techniques. In total 27 species were recorded from 14 families; 21 of them occurring in the acacia woodland and only 8 on the slimes dams. Hyparrhenia sp. was the dominant grass on Dam 5 and Imperata cylindrica dominated Dam 6. Acacia saligna was the most abundant tree species on the dams. The tree layer on the slimes dams was not as developed as the grass layer. The rehabilitated slimes dams converged with the natural woodland for the LFA indices of stability, nutrient cycling, and infiltration, which suggested a high level of functionality. The main factors affecting the sustainability of the rehabilitation are postulated to be fire, grazing, and tree harvesting. The study contributed to the importance of, and methods used for, assessing ecosystem function on rehabilitated slimes dams in Zimbabwe, which are often ignored as most efforts focus on the establishment of vegetation on the dams. Keywords ecosystem function analysis, EFA, mine tailings, rehabilitation, monitoring, Mhangura Copper Mine, ecosystem function.

Dec 1, 2013

The French research institute, INERIS, requested the assistance of the CSIR?s Division of Mining Technology in developing further precautionary measures against explosions in their collieries. In response to this approach, an on-board active suppression system was adapted to meet their mining requirements. This system is used on tunnelling machines in Germany where the machine is positioned in the middle of the tunnel, which is therefore not much wider than the machine itself. With this configuration, the machine is never away from the tunnel face during the cutting cycle. As a result, the possible volume in front of the machine of combustible gas requiring suppression is less than 50 m3. In South Africa this technology has been adapted to suit a two-cut mining method which entails greater distances from the face and thus much larger volumes of methane mixtures requiring suppression. The particular configuration of the Explo-Stop® system being investigated required the suppression of possible methane ignition volumes of up to 180 m3of a 9% per volume methane/air mixture. The volume is a consequence of the large cross-sectional area of French underground workings and of the two-cut mining method used in France. In order to take the second cut in the coal seam, the machine is pulled back a maximum distance of 4 m, leaving an air pocket in which gas can accumulate. The machine-mounted system is required to effectively suppress any flame ignited by such a large accumulated volume of methane. The results of the protocol tests done at Kloppersbos showed that the system was capable of suppressing all simulated methane ignitions for the prescribed conditions. This was achieved with a temperature increase of less than a 100°C at the operator?s position and without any flame being detected at this position.

Jan 1, 2001

By E. R. Davis, R. J. Knott

The paper discusses some of the tools of management in the field of project control, especially in engineering. Project control includes planning and cost engineering, and involves various phases: the conceptual Design and Planning Phase, the Definitive Design and Capital Budgeting Phase, and the Implementation Phase. Each of these phases is discussed in in, together with the use that can be made of data banks, progress reports, and computer systems.

Jan 1, 1982

By R. M. Tyler

The importance of the heavy mineral sands to southern African economic well-being cannot be over emphasized. The value of the worldwide titanium dioxide industry is estimated at $7 billion. Six out of eight of the world?s proposed new project areas are in southern and eastern Africa, and a seventh at Tamil Nadu in India is partly owned by a South African company, Kumba Resources. The HMS industry can be highly lucrative; its return on capital is the best in the mining industry. There are, however, problems, particularly in the smelting technology. The often considerable affect of mining on environmentally sensitive coastal dunes is also becoming increasingly important. The medium-to long-term demand for Ti-dioxide pigment and ceramic grade zircon appears very healthy. If, as predicted, the costs of producing titanium metal can be reduced, then there is huge potential for the metal. In summary, the HMS industry is an attractive one to be in, with good returns and generally manageable risks. New business opportunities and their economic implications for Africa are discussed.

Jan 1, 2004

By I. McDougall

The matte/slag tidal zone in a nickel-copper-iron-sulphide matte smelting furnace is subject to severe process conditions that can lead to premature failure of the lining. The MgO-FeO-SiO2 slag is aggressive to refractory bricks, while the Ni-Cu-Fe-S matte is aggressive to water-cooled copper cooling elements, and can penetrate and sulphidize refractory bricks. A novel approach to the lining design was taken at a PGM smelting furnace, where an indirectly-cooled graphite ring was applied in the matte/slag tidal zone, with refractory bricks on the hot face. The graphite was cooled by the copper cooling elements in the slag zone, obviating the need for copper cooling elements in the tidal zone. In this paper the effectiveness of different lining designs utilizing varying degrees of cooling in the slag zone and slag/matte tidal zones is compared. In comparison to water-cooled copper in various configurations, cooled graphite shows promise as an indirect refractory cooling system in the tidal zone area of furnaces. Keywords PGM smelting, graphite, refractory lining, copper cooling elements, submerged arc furnace.

Aug 1, 2013

By C. Siyasiya

One of the problems that is occasionally encountered during the continuous casting of DIN 1.4003 stainless steel (hereafter referred to as 1.4003) is the side bulging effect, a problem that is generally prevalent in ferritic stainless steels. This occurs because the unconstrained narrow sides of the solidification shell are not able to withstand the ferrostatic pressure once the strand has emerged from the mould. Coupled with side bulging, there is strand width variation at high temperatures, i.e. when the steel is in the ferrite-austenite dual phase region. Both of these dimensional changes to the slab profile create some processing problems in subsequent hot rolling operations when unacceptable width variations are encountered. The strength of the solidification shell and its ability to withstand the ferrostatic pressure during continuous casting is dependent on its thickness and phase composition when exiting from the mould up to a few metres downstream. From the study of the high temperature metallurgical behaviour of this steel, it was observed that a thicker solidification shell when exiting from the mould and a higher austenite volume fraction in the steel would be favourable for the reduction of the side bulging effect during continuous casting. It was also found that as long as the d-ferrite to austenite phase ratio keeps fluctuating due to variations in chemical composition and process control in the dual phase region from cast to cast, the strand width variation problem would probably persist. The remedy to this effect lies in more strict chemical composition and process control during continuous casting of this steel. The hot ductility experiments revealed that 1.4003 exhibits good hot ductility in the strand straightening temperature range with a minimum of 75 per cent reduction in area and this was attributed to the high volume fraction of ferrite (0.2 to 0.4) in the steel. This would provide a remedy to side bulging by increasing the secondary cooling rate of the strand in order to form a thicker solidification shell without necessarily risking transverse cracking and other surface defects during unbending. Keywords: side wall bulging, resistance bending moment, applied bending moment, ferrostatic pressure.

Jan 1, 2005

By V. Miguel-Silva, B. C. Afonseca

Drill-hole spacing analysis (DHSA) and optimization are becoming commonplace for uncertainty assessment and management in the mining industry. However, there is no standardized DHSA workflow, and the outputs of certain methodologies are not interchangeable. We group available simulation-based DHSA methods according to their accounted uncertainty into (i) raw uncertainty, assessed by drawing realizations from synthetic data-sets with the drilling spacings to be tested; and (ii) model uncertainty, in which these synthetic data-sets are used to assess the variation between the estimated model and the (unknown) actual value. DHSA workflows available in the literature ignore the differences between both types of uncertainty. Commonly, the DHSA algorithm is chosen without a detailed analysis of its uncertainty output, which may lead to misleading results and suboptimal decisions. While available solutions are based only on assessing raw or model uncertainty, the proposed approach simultaneously analyses both and their relationship for models at different stages of the mine. The integrated analysis results deliver more information to support decision-making than available methods. Principles, practical considerations, and discussions of the advantages of the proposed integrated analysis are presented. The approach is applied to a real gold deposit to illustrate its use.

Jun 2, 2022

By W. Bleloch

Published in the Journal, September 1970, and presented at a colloquium on &apos;Future of the Steel Industry&apos;, 17th March, 1971. Errata (a) The final sentence in the penultimate paragraph, left hand column p. 34 of the text should read: &apos;In the hot regions of the bosh and stack the C+CO2=2CO reaction proceeds to CO from coke carbon and carbon dioxide generated by reduction of iron oxides by CO (the so-called solution loss of carbon)&apos;. The italicised words have been omitted in the text. (b) Temperature in Fig. 3 is K not C. (c) In Fig. 9, connection from top plate of column 10 to heat exchanger 9 has been omitted. DISCUSSION J. B. BEEDON AND C. J. JONKER* Dr Bleloch&apos;s paper has outlined the advantages of recycling stack-gas of low nitrogen content in the blast furnace. In the first instance it would appear to be extremely beneficial in controlling the hearth temperature and allowing a 100 per cent oxygen-blast to be used. On a second point however we have to disagree. It is claimed that heat is liberated in the combustion zones by the oxidation of CO to CO2 near the tuyeres and in the subsequent reduction of the CO2 by CO. The author has hypothesized as follows, and we quote: &apos;The C+CO2=2 CO reaction in the outer combustion zone at about 1 700°C is no longer endothermic due to loss of stability of CO2 and its consequent dissociation into CO and free oxygen.&apos; This statement requires closer examination. If we consider the individual events occurring with the CO in the recycled topgas, with the oxygen in the blast and with the coke in the burden, as done by Dr Bleloch, the following heat considerations emerge. All heats of reaction are calculated from the enthalpy values of each reactant and product, as well as the temperature dependence of their molar heat capacities. (a) At the tuyeres: CO+1/2 O2-+CO2 . . . . . (1) CO, CO2 at 500°C; O2 at 25°C. ?H reaction = -65 000 cals/mole CO The reaction (1) is exothermic. (b) In the outer combustion zone: CO2+C?2 CO . . . . . . . . (2) C, CO at 1 700°C; CO2 at 500 0C. ?H reaction = -56 000 cals/mole CO Reaction (2) is endothermic. The overall heat gain of reactions (1) and (2) is ?H=+56 000 - 65 000= -9000 cals/mole CO i.e. the overall reaction is slightly exothermic, the amount of heat liberated is however smaller than suggested by Dr Bleloch. (c) The dissociation CO2+CO+1/2 O2 . . . . . (3) is a highly endothermic reaction at 1 700 0C, requiring 82 000 cals/mole CO2 to proceed to completion. Furthermore, this reaction (3) is energetically not favoured to proceed, as can be observed from the free energy-temperature relationship of figure (3), which favours the formation of CO2 at 1 700 0C. Hence direct dissociation of CO2 at 1 700 0C appears to be unlikely.* The concept of recycling topgas is however still intriguing from many other points of view. Apart from providing a very efficient method of hearth temperature control, it will create a much higher CO partial pressure in the stack. Whether the rate of indirect reduction in the stack will be proportional to this partial pressure or not is un-

Jan 9, 1970

By H. T. Chiwaye

Risk analysis is an important step in the design of rock slopes in open pit mining. Risk is defined as the product of the probability of slope failure and the consequences of the failure, and is generally evaluated in terms of safety and economic risk. Most of the risk analysis done at present is based on the use of limit equilibrium (LE) techniques in evaluating the probability of failure (POF) of the slopes. The approach typically makes use of full Monte Carlo simulations of the limit equilibrium models, with all uncertain variables randomly varied. The number of required simulations is generally over a thousand, at times as high as 20 000, in order to produce statistically valid results of the POF. Such an approach is clearly not practical when using numerical modelling programs dueto the high computational effort required. This paper explores the impact of using numerical modelling instead of the traditional LE techniques in evaluating the probability of slope failure. The difference in the overall assessed risk, in terms of economic impact, for the mining operation is then evaluated. With numerical models, approximate methods are used in the calculation of the probability of failure instead of full Monte Carlo simulations. This paper will use a method called the response surface methodology (RSM) for estimating the POF from numerical analyses. Simple slope models were used to verify the accuracy of the RSM method by comparing the results with those obtained from full Monte Carlo simulations. It is shown that there is good agreement between the POF values computed using full Monte Carlo simulation and those obtained using the RSM method. Finally, the use of numerical modelling in the assessment of risk is shown to bring a significant difference in the result compared with that from LE methods. One of the reasons for the difference is that LE models tend to underestimate the failure volumes and hence the consequences of slope failure.

Jan 1, 2010