There are numerous factors that affect open stope stability and often result in falls of ground. These falls of ground can be attributed to factors such as beam failure due to a larger than normal roof area (hydraulic radius too large), adverse ground conditions, seismicity, the stress-strain environment, absence of support, and poor drill-and-blast practices. The effect of time on the stability of open stopes is sometimes underestimated and is relatively unknown, especially on Target Mine. Actual data collected from open stopes at Target and the analysis thereof is used to show the effect of time on open stope failure. The benefits of this analysis will include improved understanding of time-dependent failure, which can assist in reducing dilution and the risk of sterilization of future mining blocks.
Target Mine is situated adjacent to the town of Allanridge some 20 km from Welkom, as shown in Figure 1, and is the most northerly mine in the Welkom Goldfields area. The mine consists of a single surface shaft system with a sub-shaft (Target 1C shaft) and a decline. Ownership was attained by Harmony Gold Mining Company Limited in May 2004 (Harmony Annual Report, 2010).
Before discussing the selection of open stopes for the back-analyses, a brief explanation of open stoping, as practiced at Target Mine, will be given. The orebody is some 180 m in thickness and 270 m wide and comprises multiple reefs overlying one another. The 180 m thick reef package is termed the Eldorado Reefs, as shown in Figure 2. These Eldorado Reefs suboutcrop against the Dreyerskuil Reefs, as shown in Figure 3. The dip of the reef varies from as low as 10° in the west to 75° in the east.
Compared with most Australian and Canadian open stoping mining operations, Target Mine is unique. In most Australian and Canadian mining operations the hangingwall and footwall of open stopes comprise waste rock, and the orebody dips relatively steeply. Due to the depth of Target Mine, some 2300 m to 2500 m below surface, a destress slot (Figure 4) is mined to create an artificial, shallow mining environment whereby the field stress is managed and kept at values of around 60 MPa. The destress slot comprises a narrow tabular stope, with an average stope width of 1.5 m, and is mined on the Dreyerskuil Reefs.
