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By Thierry Bernhard, Johan Finsteen, Charles Dowding, Mathias Jern

To bring some clarity to how different standards relate to each other a project was initiated within the European Federation of Explosives Engineers (EFEE). The first part of the project was a literature study and a survey including an evaluation of the answers provided by members of EFEE. The results were presented at the International Society of Explosives Engineers (ISEE) conference in Denver 2020 as well as the EFEE conference in Helsinki in 2019.

Feb 1, 2020

By Tristan Worsey

This work was performed during the summer of 2008 during the junior year of a BS in Mining Engineering. It was observed that the mine was having a problem with back break during the blasting of development drifts. The unwanted back break was causing the mine extra costs in ventilation, ore dilution, ground support, back fill, explosives and man-hours. The blasting practices were observed for four weeks and the problems and their solutions were defined. In this paper the reasons and causes of the problem are explained with the proposed solutions to eliminate back break.

Jan 1, 2010

By E. McCullough, D. Preece, M. Ortel

The mining and oil industries employ techniques such as geologic mapping, core drilling and electromagnetic field techniques to explore for new deposits. New discoveries of major near-surface ore bodies are becoming progressively rare and traditional exploration methods are unable to resolve ore bodies deeper than about 500 m (1640.4 ft). Consequently high-resolution seismic reflection techniques show great potential for exploration to much greater depths down to almost 3 km (1.9 mi).

Jan 1, 2013

By Juan Carlos Vasquez, Romel Villanueva

We present the results of our field research on the variation of the density of the gassed explosives and their influence on the blasting results in the Peruvian mines: Yanacocha, Toquepala and Antamina. Currently, 90% of Peruvian mines uses gassed explosives, for their economic and technical benefits. But new practices and design criteria have had to be adopted, and the most important a careful control of the in-hole density, whose variation in the depth of the hole strongly affects the detonation process.

Feb 1, 2020

By D T. Froedge

In 1972 the Kentucky State Legislature enacted House Bill 625 which was known as the Kentucky Blasting Law. This law was enacted primarily to stop problems associated with surface mining, but when it was enacted all industries using explosives were included. The bill was assigned to the Department of Mines and Minerals which created a Division of Explosives and Blasting. At that time, this division only had regulations concerning blasting. One should make a distinction between blasting regulations and other explosive regulations. Blasting is the actual use of explosives, the control of the blasting operation, how much is used, at what distances to buildings, the yardage, and other actions associated with the detonating process, explosives regulations generally including safety to the personnel and the storage of explosives.

Jan 1, 1977

By P. D. Lightfoot, C. Badeen, R. Turcotte, D. E. C. Jones

Following localized (i.e. hot-spot) ignition, there is a minimum pressure required for combustion to propagate in water-based commercial explosives. The latter is usually referred to as the ‘Minimum Burning Pressure’ (MBP) of the explosive. In the present work, both an apparatus based on hot-wire ignition and an associated methodology were developed to measure the MBP of water-based explosives. It was demonstrated that the MBP constitutes a sharp pressure threshold below which the probability of inducing sustained burning in these explosives becomes very small. It was found that each emulsion explosive tested has a distinct MBP value, which depends critically on its formulation. It appears that this test may offer a firm basis for the classification of emulsion explosives for regulatory purposes.

Jan 1, 2004

By Pierre Mousset-Jones, Geraint W. Harris, Robert Karlin, Jaak Daemen

In order to minimize the ore dilution induced by blast movement in surface mines it is necessary to quantify such movement. This will make it possible to more accurately locate the grade boundaries on the surface of a blasted rockpile prior to excavation. This paper describes the development and testing of a method to accurately measure the direction and magnitude of sub-surface blast movement. The technique involves the use of magnetic "radiometry, using a cesium vapor "radiometer and real-time differentially corrected, GPS system, to locate the post-blast position of magnetically enhanced target objects, whose pre-blast locations are known, without disturbance of the blasted rock. The objective is to design an accurate and efficient technique which can be integrated into a mines production cycle.

Jan 1, 1997

This paper presents a brief discussion of three case histories to illustrate several aspects of the question of blasting in or immediately adjacent to concrete. The results demonstrate a need to make dramatic upward revisions in previous criteria, whether it be the standard particle velocity criteria or damage response spectra bounds, - especially those which include conservative upper limits of constant acceleration for the high-frequency portion of the spectrum. It is demonstrated, also, that conventional off-the-shelf blast-monitoring instruments are not capable of monitoring small blasts at close range. Both the frequencies and the levels of effect are beyond the range of such instruments. These case histories suggest further that there is a need to review the applicability of certain wellknown equations of elasticity.

Jan 1, 1980

By Michael S. Wieland

The work-principle method was developed for theoretically resolving toxic fumes from non-ideal charge formulations. The whole description of a wanted process refers to macroscopic changes resulting from removing and imposing constraints that work one at a time to chronologically render trajectory terminal (key) states. The trajectory resolution utilizes a thermodynamic quasi-potential or negative work function, and numeric results require some appropriate standard thermodynamic (equilibrium) reaction code TDRC. The underlying method is unable to restrict reactions, tailor the work output or resolve states within the trajectory transitions, so the trajectory terminology is used somewhat figuratively. The work-principle model has the working fluid (reaction material) interacting with a tremendous reservoir (chamber air and walls), while forecasting the work performed upon a mechanical agent.

Jan 1, 1998

By J T. Patterson

The mining, quarrying and construction industries are often blamed for causing damage to residential-type structures when explosives are used. The claim experience for blasting vibration damage has been poor. This coverage is excluded from the Comprehensive General Liability (CGL) policy. To obtain this coverage, the policyholder must meet additional criteria and an additional premium must be paid. The risk management process offers the explosives user a technique for minimizing the risk of complaints and vibration damage claims on his insurance program and his cash flow. Case histories indicate that the vibration damage claims expense may be a lower risk than the risk of interference with production and cash flow. An annotated bibliography on risk management and defense of vibration damage claims is provided.

Jan 1, 1978

By Kinross Paracatu, Victor Morais, Luis Marinho, Rolando Fuentes, Lucas Steffen, Leopoldo Muñoz, Washington Vilas

Nowadays, mining operations close to communities face increasingly challenges, especially in their drilling and blasting operations. One of the critical effects are the ground vibrations produced in its surroundings. The impact on the community must be minimized to guarantee the license to operate and, on the other hand, costs must be optimized, and an adequate fragmentation must be achieved to ensure the efficiency of subsequent processes and, consequently, to give sustainability to the business. In this regard, it is necessary that some controlled blasting technique to be performed and the utilization of advanced vibrations models. Currently, it is common in the industry either use of the double decking technique, where very low explosive charges are applied, making it necessary to use smaller drill patterns in order to keep powder factor as per design, which strongly increases the demand for drilling and a consequent impact negative on costs.

Feb 6, 2023

By Jason Baird, Philip Mulligan

This report details the preliminary calculations governing the underwater collapse of an oil pipe via explosive lensing. An explosive lens changes the detonation wave produced by an explosive by changing the geometric conditions of the explosive (Zukas and Walters, 1998). Multiple lenses can be focused on a central location, generating a series of precise detonation waves collapsing in on a specific point. This report will assume a spherical-shaped, single explosive charge and explain how the authors determined the explosive charge size needed to seal a metal pipe while focusing on one explosive charge acting on part of the pipe. Future calculations will analyze the combination of multiple explosive charges acting on the pipe as a whole.

Jan 1, 2013

By Jesús V. Saccsa, Kenji B. Loayza, Erick M. Condori, Jorge A. Velásquez

This research investigates how to reduce manufacturing costs of a safety fuse composed of black powder, replacing its ingredient NO3K by NO3Na for processing, and contributing to minimize costs per blasting.

Jan 1, 2017

By Benjamin Cebrian

Rock blasting at quarries represents multiple challenges not easy to see at first sight. Aggregate industries face similar or superior prices for explosives while extracting a material that usually is of less value of metal mining operations. Therefore, learning to optimize a quarry operation can be a perfect training for a position in blasting at larger metal mining operations.

Jan 1, 2010

By David Flores, Benjamin Cebrian

This paper describes extensive engineering approaches to achieve both dilution control while not hurting fragmentation in the very hard, massive ore sections of a mine case study. Ore Tracker microchips are used to correlate performance of these designs at the SAG mill (bottleneck of this specific operation). Another gold mine uses the same technology to detect when and where operational dilution is happening. The system tells where flagging of the different ore bodies has been followed in order to detect which operators pass the excavation limits beyond ore control flagging.

Feb 1, 2020

By John Brennan

Necessity, they say, is the mother of invention. Certainly that sentiment held true during the early stages of explosive engineering. While seaside forts were concerned over static ignition of their black powder caches in the 14th century1, the mining industry in the 1800s were plagued by accidents surrounding the ignition methods for their black powder blasts.

Jan 1, 2011

By K. Hausmann, W. Whelchel

The properties of ethylene Ionomer resins for the inner layer of non-electric shock tubes will be discussed in detail, and opportunities for property enhancement will be pointed out. A stiffness program for prediction of shock tube stiffness, as determined by the stiffness of the individual layers, will be presented and discussed.

Jan 1, 2010

By G. A. Walsh, M. Timm, S. M. Geerts

This paper will discuss the effectiveness and the general use of improvised shaped charges. Testing was conducted by the New Mexico Tech Student Chapter of ISEE and held at EMRTC. The first series of tests conducted was to illustrate the performance of different features of the shaped charge. A PVC pipe filled with C4 with no cavity, PVC with an unlined conical cavity, PVC with a copper lined conical cavity and no standoff, and lastly a PVC pipe with a copper lined cavity and a 1.5 cone diameter standoff.

Jan 1, 2010

By Paulo Cesar Pavan

T&T or Traceability, is a concept of generating, storing and on demand providing information about all traceable items in the supply chain

Jan 1, 2019

By Christodoulos Xiouris, Ali Reza, James Karnesky

A rocket parachute signal flare is often used to signal a maritime emergency. In the general operation of these devices, a solid rocket motor propels a metal body to an altitude of approximately 1000 ft (305 m). At the end of the rocket motor, a propelling charge drives a signal flare and parachute out of the metal body and ignites the flare, which then burns for approximately 40 seconds as it falls to earth. In this paper, we describe an engineering investigation of an accidental ignition of a rocket parachute signal flare, which caused injury to the user. T

Feb 1, 2020