Industry Survey on the Current State of Stope Design Methods in the Underground Mining Sector

Stope design is a core discipline within mining engineering. This study analyzes the current state-of-the-art of stope design through a survey addressed to mining industry professionals. In stope design research the dominance of empirical methods has slowly shifted towards numerical methods. Recent advancements have mostly focused on the development of stope optimization algorithms. The survey consisted of 19 questions and was distributed to stope design experts via email, LinkedIn messages, and the Mining Industry Professionals network forum. In total, 36 responses of satisfying quality from 20 countries were received and analyzed. No dominance of a single stope design method was recognized. Empirical methods and personal expertise are still used widely. However, a readiness for change in stope design practice was indicated in 87% of responses. The current needs of the stoping-based underground mining sector are to increase the amount of geotechnical data, automate stope design and implement related software, and integrate these into general mine planning. According to 70% of the participants, acquired geotechnical data should be available within three days to be employed in design practice. The industry is ready to implement more efficient stope design methods if they offer results proven in case studies.

Tridimensional geotechnical database modeling as a subsidy to the standardization of geospatial geotechnical data

Geotechnical data is often produced and managed by several producers in isolation, in their own formats and standards, which aim to meet the unique needs of specific users, because there is not a defined geospatial geotechnical data storage standard. This article presents the physical implementation of a three-dimensional geotechnical database, based on a data model generated using the Object Modeling Technique for Geographic Applications, composed of information produced by the academy and various administrative institutions of the Federal District Government. More than four thousand quantitative e qualitative geotechnical investigations are available in this structured database that can be accessed by anyone with some geographic information system knowledge using QGIS. Considering that the compiled information was stored by their producers in distinct formats and most of them in a non-digital and without locational information, this work reinforces the need to adoption a standardization of geospatial geotechnical data storage on a unified basis compatible with the National Spatial Data Bank to disseminate this information.

In site geotechnical investigations in the city of Larissa and influence on the construction environment

Field testing is often a very reliable way to determine the mechanical properties of soil materials and in some cases the most appropriate and unique way to obtain accurate measurements. Geotechnical engineers and engineering geologists perform geotechnical investigations to obtain information on the physical and mechanical properties of soil and rock underlying (and sometimes adjacent to) a site to design earthworks and foundations for proposed structures. The object of the present work is the recording of the geotechnical data of the center and districts of the city of Larissa, the knowledge of which is necessary for the construction and erection of construction works, as well as the characteristics and points that need special attention in each area. Finally important conclusions refer to the construction culture, that project authorities and contractors should draw on, accordingly.

Why the future of rock mass classification systems requires revisiting their empirical past

Despite recent efforts, digitisation in rock engineering still suffers from the difficulty in standardising and statistically analysing databases that are created by a process of quantification of qualitative assessments. Indeed, neither digitisation nor digitalisation have to date been used to drive changes to the principles upon which, for example, the geotechnical data collection process is founded, some of which have not changed in several decades. There is an empirical knowledge gap which cannot be bridged by the use of technology alone. In this context, this paper presents the results of what the authors call a rediscovery of rock mass classification systems, and a critical review of their definitions and limitations in helping engineers to integrate these methods and digital acquisition systems. This discussion has significant implications for the use of technology as a tool to directly determine rock mass classification ratings and for the application of machine learning to address rock engineering problems.

Basic Mining Geotechnical Training in Mining Geology Department Vocational School (SMK) Aviation Techno Makassar

The main target of the Lembaga Pengabdian kepada Masyarakat (LPkM) UMI program for SMK Penerbang Techno Terapan is to prepare early for the ability of the students of the Mining Geology Department to be able to starter Mining Geotechnics before entering the world of work, this is related to the Geology and Mining fields in the learning process teaching in high schools. The problems experienced by partners are limitations in knowledge regarding Mining Geotechnics, especially in open mines and underground mines, with this training, it can indirectly teach students to interpret Geotechnical data in the field and assist in working neatly, planned and effective every time, so that the expected result is to facilitate knowledge and improve the quality of students in learning Mining Geotechnical training. Abstrak Program Lembaga Pengabdian kepada Masyarakat (LPkM) UMI kepada mitra SMK Penerbang Techno Terapan Makassar adalah mempersiapkan secara dini kemampuan para taruna-taruni Jurusan Geologi Pertambangan agar dapat menguasai Geoteknik Tambang sebelum memasuki dunia kerja, hal ini terkait dengan bidang Geologi dan Pertambangan dalam proses belajar mengajar di sekolah. Permasalahan yang dialami oleh mitra yaitu keterbatasan dalam ilmu pengetahuan berkenaan Geoteknik Tambang terutama pada tambang terbuka dan tambang bawah tanah, dengan adanya pelatihan ini, secara tidak langsung dapat mengajarkan kepada taruna-taruni untuk menginterpretasikan data Geoteknik yang ada dilapangan dan membantu dalam bekerja secara rapi, terencana dan efektif setiap waktu, sehingga hasil yang diharapkan adalah memperlancar ilmu pengetahuan dan peningkatan kualitas para taruna-taruni dalam mempelajari dan menguasai pelatihan Geoteknik Tambang.

InSAR, seismic noise, and geotechnical data to assess landslide activity and geometry: the Villa de Independencia (Cochabamba, Bolivia) case study

<p>Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) enables detailed investigation of surface landslide movements but lacks information about subsurface recognition/identification. It can be obtained by means of direct measurements (e.g., geotechnical data) and geophysical techniques. InSAR observations, seismic noise measurements, and geotechnical data were integrated to assess the deformation on the ground surface and to determine the depth of the failure surface of the Villa de Independencia landslide, Cochabamba (Bolivia) affecting the village. It is a compound slow-moving landslide (total area approximatively 3.8·10<sup>6</sup> m<sup>2</sup>) composed by three sub-blocks slide exhibiting diverse geometries, multiple failure surfaces, and magnitudes.</p><p>For investigating the spatiotemporal characteristics of the landslide motion, Sentinel-1 time series from October 2014 to December 2019 were analysed. A new geometric inversion method was also proposed to determine the best-fit sliding direction and inclination of the landslide. Results of the Sentinel-1 time series show two substantial accelerations in early 2018 and 2019, coinciding with an increment of precipitations in the late rainy season. It allows supposing the rainy as the most likely triggers of the identified accelerations.</p><p>The seismic noise measurements (more than one hundred spreaded over the whole landslide), analysed according to the Vertical to Horizontal Spectral Ratio technique (H/V), were calibrated and validated by means of the geotechnical data derived by three boreholes and 13 between rock and soil samples. H/V data allowed identifying the different dynamic characteristics of the three sub-blocks: movements are possibly due to the different properties of shallow and deep slip surfaces. The landslides caused damage on the edifices, probably mainly caused by the shallow slip interface (located at a mean depth of 5 m) since the foundation depth of the buildings is at most 2 m. In the town centre a deeper failure surfaces, approximatively with depth between 15 and 75 m, can be identified which may be responsible for its different direction and acceleration magnitude of sliding (inferred by InSAR) compared to the other parts of the landslides. Finally, the determination of the slip surface depths allowed to estimate the overall landslide volume assessed approximatively 9.18·10<sup>7</sup> m<sup>3</sup>.</p><p>The study shows the great potential for landslide motion characterization and mechanism investigation by combing InSAR, seismic noise and geotechnical measurements.</p>