... excavation. Empirical rock mass classification schemes have been widely and successfully used to quantify the risks attached to a shaft prior to excavation. However, the risk of raisebored excavation failures due to unforeseen ground conditions is still a concern, hence the need for improved stability...

..., the geotechnical model is built on data obtained from four different consultants over 15 years, spanning from conceptual study to design. Stability conditions are investigated through limit equilibrium method and compared to the numerical analysis using finite difference method. Three critical profiles, based...

... 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...

... affecting slope stability in open pit mines are therefore more complex and often difficult to define, impeding the use of conventional methods. To address the problem, the primary role of rock mass structure, in-situ stress, water flow, and construction have been extended into 18 key parameters...

... In open pit mines, the orebody is extracted from different benches, which should be stable, as the stability of slopes plays a critical role in reducing and controlling rock falls. Slopes in open pit mines are major geotechnical structures, and can affect mining operations when they are not well...

... A mining operation transitioning from open pit to underground in an area where the mine design does not allow caving through to surface normally requires a crown pillar for protection of the underground workings beneath the pit. Crown pillar stability is maintained to prevent inrushes of water...

... cables placed around mesh-wrapped pillars as an effective means to improve pillar stability and control mine deformation. In the present study, and with the background of available laboratory uniaxial compressive strength tests on cabled samples and empirical knowledge of pillar behaviour, we present...

... pressure is mostly limited by the tightness issue, the minimum pressure is mainly governed by stability aspects. In this paper, the possibility of lowering the minimum pressure in operation below the atmospheric pressure is investigated, focusing on the cavern stability aspects. During construction...

... was employed to assess the pillar and panel stability in a ‘high’ extraction stooping operation at various depths ranging between 20 m and 80 m below surface. A relationship for the stability of each of the remaining snooks is presented based on the axial pillar strain and the associated depth below surface...

... length final stope metals & mining lode ground condition MRL wall rock rock mass reservoir geomechanics rib pillar stability sequence Orebody sill pillar pillar Plan View reservoir simulation shear zone south lode sublevel footwall drive secondary stope AfriRock 2017 Rock...

... and allow more reliable and realistic numerical slope simulations. INTRODUCTION The stability of high natural and engineered rock slopes is becoming increasingly important. Population growth has resulted in the development of major infrastructure in mountainous areas and in the excavation of deeper open...

... Characterization classification Engineer Upstream Oil & Gas pump chamber investigation interpretation water management platform discontinuity cofferdam stability rock mass Shaft Excavation construction structural geology boschkop abstraction work rock support excavation footprint cut face...

... FLAC3D was employed to assess pillar and panel stability for a partial stooping operation at a coal mine in South Africa, where the main requirement was that ground surface stability be ensured. The stability of square and rectangular pillars was assessed using a strain criterion linked...

... The design of support pillar layouts in shallow South African mines has historically been based on comparisons of pillar strength to pillar loading, providing some acceptable factor of safety. For this evaluation of pillar stability, empirical strength formulae were compared to either tributary...