• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.54-70
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• 2024

Utilization of completed open-pit for mining waste disposal is an alternative method of tailing storage facility (TSF), which can minimize the area and cost required for the installation of TSF. However, long-term tailing disposal into open-pit has a potential risk of reducing mechanical stability of surrounding rock mass by acting as an additional load. In this research, a realistic open-pit tailing disposal scenario of 60,400 hours was established based on the case of Marymia gold mine, Australia. Mechanical stability of surface pillar between open-pit and underground stope was analyzed numerically by using Sigma/W, under different stope geometry and rock mass conditions. Simulation results showed that long-term tailing disposal into open-pit can significantly increase the failure probability of surface piller. This result suggests that mechanical stability of mine geometry should be conducted beforehand of open-pit tailing disposal.

• Journal of Industrial Technology
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• v.30 no.A
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• pp.17-23
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• 2010

Recently, a large number of open-pit mines are planning to change their mining method to underground types because the environmental concerns and legal regulations are increased with a rise in the standard of living. The K silica mine, which is one of them and located in Kyunggi province, is planning the establishment of a vertical shaft which will be used for ore-pass channel in their new glory hole mining method. This vertical shaft will be designed to join with a horizontal gangway excavated from the ground level. In this new mining system, the excavated ore particles will be stored inside a shaft and transported out with a help of a conveyor belt. Therefore the hang-up of ore particles in a shaft, the control of gate at the bottom of a shaft, the installation of dog-leg at the gate should be investigated identically. In this study, the PFC-2D code which is one of the discrete element numerical methods has been applied to simulate the particle flow mechanism in a shaft, and the optimum mine design has been proposed to maximize the productivity and to minimize the system damage.

• Korean Journal of Remote Sensing
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• v.38 no.4
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• pp.365-374
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• 2022

Mining activity causes environmental pollution and geological hazards such as ground subsidence or landslide of which continuous monitoring is necessary. In this study, the activity on the Fushun West Open-Pit Mine (FWOPM), one of the largest open-pit coal mines in Asia located in Fushun, Liaoning Province, China, was analyzed by using a time-series Sentinel-1 InSAR coherence dataset. By using the difference between the two Digital Elevation Models (DEM) of the area, it was possible to confirm that there was a stockpiling activity in the western area of the FWOPM while excavation activity in the eastern area. By using RGB composite images using the yearly-averaged InSAR coherence images, the activity of the mine was confirmed by period, which was confirmed by Google Earth optical images. As a result, it was possible to confirm three landslides and the related activities on the northwest slope and the dumping activity on the west slope of FWOPM.

• The Magazine of the Society of Air-Conditioning and Refrigerating Engineers of Korea
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.395-407
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• 1988

Transient flow in a cold-water supply system for cooling the inside of a coal mining pit was numerically simulated. Properly designed and presetted pressure reducing valves control the level of pressures of the piping system at normal or emergent conditions Quasi-steady relations to simulate the valve motion are obtained and the transient performance of the valve is investigated in the present paper. The present method reasonably simulate transient phenomena in the system including the pressure reducing valve. Excessive valve motion and column separation are simulated when the flow is abruptly reduced. A calculated example of the real system is also presented. The simulation can be used for the safety-check and the guidance for design and operation in emergent cases of the system.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.60 no.5
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• pp.809-828
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• 2016

In deep open pit mines, slope stability is very important. Particularly, increasing the depths increase the risks in mines having weak rock mass. Blasting operations in this type of open pits may have a negative impact on slope stability. Several or combination of methods can be used in order to enable better analysis in this type of deep open-pit mines. Numerical modeling is one of these options. Many complex problems can be integrated into numerical methods at the same time and analysis, solutions can be performed on a single model. Rock failure criterions and rock models are used in numerical modeling. Hoek-Brown and Mohr-Coulomb terms are the two most commonly used rock failure conditions. In this study, mine planning and discontinuity conditions of a lignite mine facing two big landslides previously, has been investigated. Moreover, the presence of some damage before starting the study was identified in surrounding structures. The primary research of this study is on slope study. In slope stability analysis, numerical modeling methods with Hoek-Brown and Mohr-Coulomb failure criterions were used separately. Preparing the input data to the numerical model, the outcomes of patented-blast vibration minimization method, developed by co-author was used. The analysis showed that, the model prepared by applying Hoek-Brown failure criterion, failed in the stage of 10. However, the model prepared by using Mohr-Coulomb failure criterion did not fail even in the stage 17. Examining the full research field, there has been ongoing production in this mine without any failure and damage to surface structures.

• Korean Journal of Remote Sensing
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• v.37 no.3
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• pp.531-542
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• 2021

Open-pit mines require constant monitoring as they can cause surface changes and environmental disturbances. In open-pit mines, there is little vegetation at the mining site and can be monitored using InSAR (Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar) coherence imageries. In this study, activities occurring in mine were analyzed by applying the recently developed InSAR coherence-based NDAI (Normalized Difference Activity Index). The March 5 Youth Mine is a North Korean mine whose development has been expanded since 2008. NDAI analysis was performed with InSAR coherence imageries obtained using Sentinel-1 SAR images taken at 12-day intervals in the March 5 Youth Mine. First, the area where the elevation decreased by about 75.24 m and increased by about 9.85 m over the 14 years from 2000 was defined as the mining site and the tailings piles. Then, the NDAI images were used for time series analysis at various time intervals. Over the entire period (2017-2019), average mining activity was relatively active at the center of the mining area. In order to find out more detailed changes in the surface activity of the mine, the time interval was reduced and the activity was observed over a 1-year period. In 2017, we analyzed changes in mining operations before and after artificial earthquakes based on seismic data and NDAI images. After the large-scale blasting that occurred on 30 April 2017, activity was detected west of the mining area. It is estimated that the size of the mining area was enlarged by two blasts on 30 September 2017. The time-averaged NDAI images used to perform detailed time-series analysis were generated over a period of 1 year and 4 months, and then composited into RGB images. Annual analysis of activity confirmed an active region in the northeast of the mining area in 2018 and found the characteristic activity of the expansion of tailings piles in 2019. Time series analysis using NDAI was able to detect random surface changes in open-pit mines that are difficult to identify with optical images. Especially in areas where in situ data is not available, remote sensing can effectively perform mining activity analysis.

• Industrial Engineering and Management Systems
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• v.11 no.1
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• pp.94-102
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• 2012

In this paper, an interactive planning and scheduling framework are proposed for optimising operations from pits to crushers in ore mining industry. Series of theoretical and practical operations research techniques are investigated to improve the overall efficiency of mining systems due to the facts that mining managers need to tackle optimisation problems within different horizons and with different levels of detail. Under this framework, mine design planning, mine production sequencing and mine transportation scheduling models are integrated and interacted within a whole optimisation system. The proposed integrated framework could be used by mining industry for reducing equipment costs, improving the production efficiency and maximising the net present value.

• Explosives and Blasting
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.1-8
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• 2006

Recently, most of limestone quarries have been not mined by open-pit mining but by underground excavation to reduce environmental pollution. As a result, the size of underground galleries became bigger to maintain mass-production close to open-pit mining. However, the scale of pillars and galleries as well as the excavation methods may induce a few adverse problems for the stability of a mined gallery. In this study, the nomogram analysis and the prediction of rock damage zone induced by blasting were carried out. The testing conditions include concurrent blasting of two adjacent galleries, concurrent blasting of a transport drift and a inclined shaft, sequential blasting of two galleries, and separate blasting for each gallery. For each testing condition, blast vibration velocity was measured and analyzed. From the prediction formulas for blast vibration velocity derived in this study, the maximum depth of rock damage zone induced by blasting were also predicted.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.32 no.5
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• pp.327-343
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• 2022

The standard work report for trucks was developed that records data on truck haulage operations in open-pit and underground mines, and to evaluate the performance of haulage operations. Work reports used in 5 mines in Korea was secured and analyzed, and items to be included in the standard work report were determined. By analyzing the formulas for key performance indicators (KPIs) proposed by the Global Mining Guidelines Group (GMG), it was possible to determine how to record time-related data. After selecting a limestone underground mine as a research area, the performance of haulage operations was evaluated using a standard work report. As a result, in terms of truck availability, uptime was 46.7%, and both physical and mechanical availability were 100%. In the case of utilization, use of availability was 88.2%, the asset utilization was 41.1%, and operating and effective utilization were 88.2% and 79.2%, respectively. Also, in terms of efficiency, operating efficiency was found to be 89.9%.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.27 no.6
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• pp.601-609
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• 1994

Uranium resources of Mongolia are generally confined to sediments deposited during Jurassic to Cretaceous volcanism. Territory of Mongolian uranium deposits is divided into four districts as follows; Mongol-Priargun, Gobi-Tamtsag, Hentii-Dauer, North-Mongolian. Potential uranium deposits were discovered by Airborne Gamma ray Spectrometric Survey(AGSM). One of them, Haraat deposit, which was interested to us, has been under detailed survey for exploitation by one of American companies, Concord company. The Erdes uranium mine is partly operated by about hundred Russian staffs at the open pit, while underground mining facilities such as the main hoist are almost closed. Ore minerals of the Erdes Mine are coffinite and pitchblende. Uranium content in ore ranges from 0.06% to 1%, averaging 0.2%. Ore reserves of uranium ore in the Dornod deposit including the Erdes Mine accounts 29,000 ton. It is reported that Uranium resources of Mongolia are 1,471,000 ton.