Research ReportsIt is the ACG’s policy to make the results of research available, wherever possible, through publication of final reports. The following reports are available for purchase. |
Underground Mining |
Open Pit Mining |
Environmental Geomechanics
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Generic |
Underground MiningTowards the Elimination of Rockfall Fatalities in Australian Mines
Authors: Y. Potvin (ACG), P. Nedin (Underground Mining Solutions), M. Sandy (AMC Consultants), K. Rosengren (Kevin Rosengren and Associates) and M. Rosengren. Readership: Underground mining engineers, OHS personnel, research institutions, rock mechanics engineers, trainers and geotechnical engineers. Rockfall: An uncontrolled fall of ground of significant size in an entry area, or an uncontrolled fall of ground of any size that causes (or potentially causes) injury or damage. It is estimated that in the last decade, falls of ground caused 25% of all lost time injuries and 40% of all fatal accidents in Western Australian underground mines. This one-year industry project created arguably the most comprehensive database on rockfalls, investigating more than 750 incidents that occurred between 1993 and 2001. The research findings provide industry with an essential source of information to reduce the incidence of rockfall related injuries and accidents.
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(Phase I Report)
(Phase II Report)Open Pit MiningFurther Research into Methods of Analysing the Stability of Deep Open Pit Mines
Readership: Mine personnel involved in the management and operation of open pit mines. This extension to the collaborative research project on slope stability consists of a study of the interaction between open pit slopes and underground workings relevant to Western Australian operations. Case histories are being used from China and Western Australia. The work included centrifuge modelling of underground openings;
Integrated Monitoring Systems for Open Pit Wall Deformation
Report content:
Three-Dimensional Evaluation of In-Situ Stress Field at Mt Whaleback
Published: November 2005 Executive Summary and Introduction The results from this project provide the best possible three-dimensional structural geological information from which the in-situ stresses at Mt Whaleback can be interpreted. The results provide the basis for designing a safe and economic shape for the ultimate open-cut mine at Mt Whaleback, which will have a depth of 400 m below mean ground level. The extensive in-house geological database that exists on the Mt Whaleback mine has been evaluated and compiled, and six detailed cross-sections through the mine and surrounding regions have been constructed. Existing drill-hole and face-mapping information have been supplemented by measurement of additional structural information along 100m corridors on either side of the six cross-sections, and a three-dimensional model of the Mt Whaleback Mine has been constructed.
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Authors: C.F. Swindells (Golder Associates), M.A. Coulthard (Coulthard & Associates), D.P. Adhikary (UWA), and C. Wang, R. Ganeswaran and T.S. Golosinski (WA School of Mines)
Authors: X. Ding, S.B. Montgomery, M. Tsakiri (Curtin University), C.F. Swindells (Golder Associates), and R.J. Jewell (ACG)
Authors: B. Ascott and C. McA Powell (Department of Geology and Geophysics, The University of Western Australia)
Authors: Australia - Australian Centre for Geomechanics, Department of Minerals and Energy of Western Australia and The University of Western Australia. China - Ministry of Metallurgical Industry, Wuhan Iron and Steel Corporation, Changsha Research Insitute of Mining and Metallurgy and North Eastern University.Environmental GeomechanicsMetallurgical Mine Tailings Rehabilitation
Readership: Mine managers, site supervisory personnel, environmental officers and operators. The project involved a trial study of rehabilitation of the side slopes of embankments raised by the upstream construction method to be undertaken on a large tailings facility at Gushan and for associated laboratory trials to be undertaken by MIMR at Maanshan. In order to equip MIMR personnel with the appropriate skills, a qualified Chinese researcher undertook a 12 months training program with the Centre for Land Rehabilitation (CLR) at the UWA in Perth, and in addition, various items of equipment were purchased for MIMR. Together, these provided MIMR with the capability to undertake similar work on other projects in China.
Saline Tailings Disposal and Decommissioning
Readership: Mine managers, site supervisory personnel, environmental officers and operators. This report is an essential source of information on the consolidation behaviour of tailings, particularly the saline tailings produced by the gold industry of Western Australia. The findings from the consolidation modelling and evaporation studies are significant. Out of print. Please contact MERIWA for electronic versions.
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Authors: D. Jasper (Centre for Land Rehabilitation, UWA) and Z.Yibin, W.Yunming and Y.W. Shen (Maanshan Institute of Mining Research, P.R.China)
Authors: T.A. Newson and M. Fahey (UWA)
Authors: M.F. Randolph, P.G. Watson, M.F. Bransby and M. Fahey (UWA)