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By Robert Hopler

Some few years ago, when the cruiser “Brooklyn” was passing through the fairway to the southwest of the Battery, the ship being fully equipped with stores, etc., and therefore at her maximum draft, she grounded quite heavily upon some obstruction, and received injuries which necessitated her docking at the Brooklyn navy yard, where extensive repairs had to be made on her damaged bottom.

Jan 1, 2007

By T Davids, B J. J Botha

The presence of an extensive soft siltstone layer in the middle of the inter-burden sequence of rocks at Syferfontein Colliery in South Africa prompted tests to determine the effect of different mid-column decks of inert material in the siltstone layer. The objective was to achieve significant cost savings in explosives use whilst not degrading dragline productivity. An important factor that had to be considered was that the initiation systems available in South Africa are not accurate enough to ensure simultaneous initiation of explosives decks in a hole.

Jan 1, 1994

By Don W. Lake

Of all the blast monitor& instrumentation systems and techniques av&able today, highspeed photography and videography remain as the most valuable, stand alone, diagnostic techniques to evaluate full scale blasts in the mining and explosives industries. Highspeed image data, coupled with information from other instrumentation systems, such as continuous VOD records, seismographs, laser surveying systems, refraction seismographs, etc. can eIiminate many assumptions about what actually took place in a blast. Thus, diagnostic confidence in evaluating both good and bad blasts is increased, and optimum blast designs are achieved considerably faster when compared to the trial and error approach or relying on just the experience factor.

Jan 1, 1992

By Mark S. Stagg, David E. Siskind

The mining industry occasionally blasts near pressurized transmission pipelines and has requested guidance of safe vibration levels and setback distances. the Bureau of Mines and the Indiana Department of Natural Resources cooperated with AMAX Coal Company on a study of coal mine overburden blasting. Five buried and pressurized 250-ft pipeline sections were specifically installed on the Minnehaha Mine highwall near Sullivan, IN for testing to failure. Four welded steel pipes ranging from 6- to 20- in diameter and one 8- PVC water supply pipe were monitored for vibration, strain, and internal pressure for a period of 6 months while production blasting advanced up to the pipeline field. In contrast to previous studies of small-scale blasting representing construction activities, these tests involved overburden blasts of up to 2100 lb per delay in 12-l/4-in diameter holes.

Jan 1, 1996

By Jason Ryan, Stephen Harria

Q.E.D. (QED) is a blast design and evaluation model that allows full three-dimensional design specification including the development of unique “live” terrains and an unlimited variety of complex charge configurations. QED’s analysis package allows the examination of likely outcomes resulting from changing various design variables in terms of vibration, fragmentation, rock-mass damage and muck-pile profile. Especially applicable to use cautious blasting applications, QED’s damage model uses vibration to estimate rock damage beyond excavation boundaries. This relates directly to operations such as Yucca Mountain Nuclear Waste Repository in Nevada, where damage beyond the excavation perimeter must be tightly controlled. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) h as b een studying a site at Yucca Mountain, NV to determine its suitability for long term storage of nuclear waste. The main mechanism of waste isolation will be the natural barrier of the host rock Total Systems Performance Assessment (ISPA) is used to model the excavation design and its behavior over time. Of importance to TSPA is quantifying the condition of the rock-mass before and after excavation. Ideally, there should be no excavation-induced changes to the rock-mass’ structure (removing the requirement to model the effects). At the least it may be possible to keep excavation-induced damage far enough away from waste packages so that modeling of these effects will not be required. QED can calculate a prediction of the extents of blast induced damage to the rock-mass. By using this metric as a design parameter, it may be possible to complete excavation of the repository more rapidly and inexpensively than previously thought, without jeopardizing the structural integrity of the waste containment areas or requiring blast damage to be modeled by the TSPA. This paper will explain the structure of the QED blast modeling system and show the analysis of historical data from Yucca Mountain. Processing of the historical data and the subsequent results will demonstrate how blast modeling can be used on an ongoing basis to assist the excavation process at Yucca Mountain.

Jan 1, 2000

By Cristian Rodriguez, Tom BoBo, Maria Rocha, John Kemeny

Blast fragmentation depends on many factors. First of all, it depends on the specific blast design, which includes the amount and type of explosive, the blasting pattern, the timing and sequencing, and other parameters. Secondly, it depends on the properties of the rock mass, including the uniaxial compressive strength (UCS), the rock mass elastic modulus (E), the rock discontinuity characteristics (as reflected in the GSI or RMR), and the rock density. Several fragmentation models have been proposed to predict blast fragmentation based on the blast design and the properties of the rock. These models include the Kuz-Ram model and variations of this model, as well as recent models by Kim and Kemeny (2011) and others. Fragmentation models are validated and calibrated by comparing the predicted fragmentation with actual post-blast fragmentation from image processing monitoring systems.

Jan 1, 2014

By Dale S. Preece, Lee M. Taylor

Accurate computer prediction of the muck pile produced by a conventional blast requires modeling of the physics that occurs during the rock motion phase of a blast. The ability to predict the motion and the subsequent muck pile can have a significant economic impact on the mining industry.

Jan 1, 1990

By R Castedo, L. M. Lopez, J. A. Sanchidrian

In 2014 the authors presented results from 13 tests made with two blasting seismographs on a vibration exciter. They measured coupling transmissibility as function of frequency (i.e. ratio of the velocity of the sensor mount to the velocity of the ground motion) from 16 to 200 Hz at one or two vibrations levels (5 mm/s or 0.2 in/s, and 20 mm/s or 0.79 in/s) with mounts freely placed, sandbagged, and anchored to a granite slab firmly attached to the plate of a vibration exciter. As the memory capacity of one of the seismographs prevented to cover low frequencies, e.g. 4-16 Hz, a new measuring campaign has been recently made to extend the study down to 2 Hz. In this campaign, two more techniques, in which the sensor mounts were fixed with thermal adhesive or a combination of duct tape and gypsum plaster, have been also investigated from 2 to 200 Hz at 5 and 20 mm/s. Free and sandbagged mounts lead to a weak coupling of the mounts to rock, so that transmissibility depends on the characteristics of the imposed rock motion (peak velocity and frequency). Measurements are accurate only at low frequencies (below 17 Hz for free mounts and 10 Hz for sandbagged) in the tested conditions (velocities up to 20 mm/s). Above these frequencies, ground motion in the measurement can be modified by a factor of 0.16 to 1.22. Anchored, glued and plastered mounts achieve a stiff rock-to-ground coupling, ensuring consistent measurements for the frequencies commonly found in blasting independently of the vibration level and the mount characteristics

Jan 1, 2015

By William H. Highlands

Lightning is a natural phenomenon which poses a potential hazard to people, structures, and equipment unless adequate protection is provided. The type of protection required is related to the nature and of the facility. The decision making process involves a number of interrelated factors which should be considered when determining the need for protection.

Jan 1, 1989

By Qian (Ken) Liu, Remi Proulx

A large scale blast damage project was carried out over the past two years at INCO Ltd Manitoba Division co-funded by the Canada/Manitoba Mineral Development Agreement. The experiment was conducted at the T-3 Mine in two mining stopes with an experimental drift developed in the hanging-wall for the installation of monitoring instrumentation. The objective was to observe and subsequently to reduce ore dilution by monitoring the performance of blasts, the hanging wall movement, as well as the cavity of the open stopes.

Jan 1, 1995

By Edward Walter

Rock excavation for tunneling projects occurs on a regular basis in the Cleveland area. These tunnels are being constructed to increase the capacity of the sanitary sewer system. Controlled blasting must be performed to remove rock in a number of phases of the project. The rock excavation for construction of a junction chamber is just one case where blasting is the safest and most efficient method available.

Jan 1, 2001

By Randall Wheeler, R. Frank Chiappetta

2000 HIGH-TECH SEMINAR Blasting Technology, Instrumentation. and Explosives Applications - Orlando, Florida, USA July 24 - 27,200O 2000 BAI - PROTECTION AGAINST LITIGATION WITH GOOD PRE-BLAST SURVEYS, DAMAGE INSPECTIONS AND RECORD KEEPING 1 of 65 Good Record Keeping is Essential for: 1 ) Compliance with any prevailing Local, State or Federal Regulations, ordinances and permits. 2 ) Protection against potential litigation. 3 ) Balancing explosive consumption, use & costs. 4 ) Use in blast designs.5 ) Blast diagnostics & troubleshooting good/bad shots.

Jan 1, 2000

"The objective in controlled blasting is to reduce overbreak to control the final pit wall slope, shaft, drift ditch, bench, etc. to the final planned excavation limit. The six main types of controlled blasting utilized today are:1. Line Drilling2. Cushion Blasting3. Smooth Wall Blasting4. Buffer Blasting5. Presplitting or Preshearing6. Air Deck Presplitting"

Jan 1, 1994

By Brent Blanchard

Dallas/Fort Worth Airport recently took a major step in its fiveyear expansion project with the explosive demolition of the Hyatt Regency Hotel West. Built in 1965, the Hyatt Regency held the distinction of hosting five U.S. Presidents over the years and was reportedly one of the first hotels in the world to be built within an airport’s boundaries.

Jan 1, 2003

By George P. Jr Schivley

Looking at the process of drilling rock from the standpoint of the power required, yields an equation that relates Force-on-the-Bit; Torque, to rotate the bit; and bit Angular Speed to the Penetration Rate of the bit; the Area of the hole being drilled and the Specific Fracture Energy of the rock. Specific Fracture Energy and the Compressive Strength of the rock are related.

Jan 1, 1994

By Marwan M. Mohammed, Hani S. Mitri, Wilfrid Comeaul, Baoyao Tang

In many parts of the world, rockbursts have become a major problem of mining at depth. As orebodies are being mined deeper, rockburst phenomena have become familiar to deep hard rock mines. Rockbursts are generally characterised by sudden release of energy in a volume of highly stressed rock, which can cause local violent failure of the rock mass around the opening. One method of controlling these failures is to precondition the rock mass by detonating fully confined explosive charges at the appropriate locations. This method known as destress blasting, was first tried in the deep South African gold mines (Roux et al., 1957), and was widely used later in Canada, United States, France, Poland and Japan.

Jan 1, 1999

By Benjamin Cebrian

Wall control blasting is an expensive and labor intensive operation. Obtaining a good design is a first step that is not enough to ensure desired results. Experience shows that designs are not always well implemented, not only in the contour blast itself, but also in surrounding production blasts that can affect the final pit wall. In this paper techniques and reference indicators are described in order to audit and evaluate if correct implementation of designs have been done.

Jan 1, 2013

By P Cotton, N Cox

The Brisbane City Council has implemented a program of continual improvement at its Mount Coottha Quarry in the heart of Brisbane, Australia. The program has been underway for the past 6 years, and has resulted in very significant improvements in terms of both the cost effectiveness of its operation, and in terms of its environmental impact on nearby residents. The work has included a focus, amongst other things, on blasting efficiency and has challenged conventional thinking in terms of the size of blasts fired, the frequency of firing, the diameter of blastholes, and the use of bulk emulsion or slurry explosives.

Jan 1, 1996

By Gregory Poole

With access to the World Wide Web, many resources are readily available for improving claim reports. With a little time spent on line, a more thorough report can be created. Claimants will accept the conclusions of a report more readily when they can view support information on their own computer, particularly when the support information is not just from blasting related web sites. Some suggested resources are discussed including aerial pictures, local tax maps, topographical maps and home repair web sites. This paper provides suggestions for tracking down support information on the web and information on how to properly reference this information. Case studies of several claim investigations are presented. These are some examples of how a little time spent online provided clear and convincing evidence to support the conclusions of the investigation.

Jan 1, 2006

By Tristan Worsey, Nathan Rouse

The Florida legislature allocated funding for the Florida State Fire Marshal (FSFM) to review the applicability of the United States Bureau of Mines (USBM) Report of Investigations (RI) 8507 blast vibration limits with respect to Florida and its soils. The study also discusses whether the current blasting vibration limits set by statute are still appropriate, including a review of measured vibration amplitudes and frequencies, structure responses, and theoretical analyses of material strength and strains

Jan 1, 2019