A new algorithm for stope boundary optimization

Erkan Topal, Jeroen Sens

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

52 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Stopes can be simply defined as an underground opening from which ore has been excavated. Selection of the best combination of available stope boundary will directly affect the profitability of the operation. While a few attempts has been initiated to generate the optimum stope boundary for underground mining, they fail to guarantee a true optimal-ity in three-dimension block models. This paper proposed a new methodology which can find optimum stope layout for a given resource model in three-dimensions. The paper initially critically reviewed important stope boundary optimisation studies thus far, then proposed a new methodology in order to find the best stope layout for a given deposit. Subsequently it applied the proposed methodology into a block model to test its ability of producing optimum results and demonstrated its applicability in a number of different scenarios. In the last section, further analysis on strategies to find the optimum stope boundaries were demonstrated. The results prove that the proposed algorithm can find optimum stope boundaries and layouts in three-dimension for different stope sizes and stope selection strategies.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)113-119
Number of pages7
JournalJournal of Coal Science and Engineering
Volume16
Issue number2
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Jun 2010
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Optimisation
  • Stope design
  • Stope layout algorithm
  • Underground mining

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Geotechnical Engineering and Engineering Geology
  • Energy Engineering and Power Technology

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