Innovative concepts in underground materials handling

Transcription

1 Innovtive concepts in undegound mteils hndling by M. Fuchs* J o u n l Synopsis Thee is still dive woldwide to impove on existing methods of mining. The demnd is fo mining volumes to be incesed while the poductions costs must be educed. Aginst the bckgound of these equiements, SANDVIK hs been eseching nd developing innovtive concepts fo meeting these pticul demnds. The pupose of this pesenttion is to she infomtion on two of these methodologies. The one system illusttes the deployment of conveyos cpble of opeting ound cones while still opeting s continuous hulge system. The othe system demonsttes the pinciple of extemely fst stight line development coupled with the flexibility of sustined pid edeployment of the system. Both of the systems will be descibed nd discussed in tun. Continuous hulge sytem Genel desciption The continuous hulge system seves the equiement to mine undegound minel deposits in wy tht inceses the efficiency of continuous mining mchine by mximizing the mchine utiliztion, which mens eliminting the witing fo n intemittent mteil cleing system in the likes of shuttle c. The continuous hulge system will seve s pemnent connection between the continuous mining mchine nd the pemnently instlled undegound mteil hndling system of the mine. (Figue 1.) The continuous hulge system follows the continuous mining mchine thoughout the entie cutting pocess. Duing this mining pocess the continuous mine cuts the mteil out of the mining fce nd tnspots it vi onbod loding devices nd conveyos to the bck of the mchine whee it is dischged into hoppe c. This hoppe c, s n integl pt of the continuous hulge system, lods the Sicon conveyo system which tnsfes the mteil t its dischge end onto the pemnently instlled undegound mteil hndling system, which in the cse of col mine will typiclly be the section conveyo. Duing the eteting opetion of the continuous mine, the continuous hulge systems lso bcks up out of the mined e, lwys mintining the connection of the mteil flow between the mine nd the section belt conveyo system. Detiled desciption Intemittent mteil cleing systems e vey time consuming nd theefoe money consuming. Shuttle cs eceive the mined mteil fom the bck of continuous mine nd tuck it to the section belt conveyo fo conveying the mteil out of the mine. Afte dischging the lod onto the belt conveyo, the shuttle c etuns to the bck of the mine to eceive the next lod. Duing those extended witing peiods fo the shuttle c to etun, the continuous mine, in ou cse n ABM14, is not being utilized. Low utiliztion figues e being followed by low mining dvnce distnces, which gin e diectly ffecting the poduction figues nd theefoe the income of the mine itself. High emphsis is being given to educe this witing time by, fo exmple, utilizing two shuttle cs so one cn be loded while the othe one is in tnsit. This hs incesed the utiliztion of the continuous mine to some degee. The ultimte tget is to eliminte ll the witing time nd this cn be chieved when connecting the continuous mine pemnently with the section belt conveyo nd lso giving the mine enough feedom to tvel fowds nd bckwds duing its cutting/mining pocess. A el continuous mining pocess cn then be pefomed. (Figue 2.) * Sndvik Mteils Hndling, South Afic. The Southen Aficn Institute of Mining nd Metllugy, SA ISSN X/ This ppe ws fist published t the SAIMM Confeence, Mining Achievements, Recods nd Benchmks, Septembe P p e The Jounl of The Southen Aficn Institute of Mining nd Metllugy VOLUME 106 NON-REFEREED PAPER DECEMBER

2 Innovtive concepts in undegound mteils hndling Figue 1 Continous hulge system Continuous Hoppe C Continuous hulge Selection belt conveyo system Figue 2 Continuous mining pocess Figue 3 Continuous bolte mine This cn be done, even fo esticted distnce, with so-clled continuous hulge system. In ou cse the distnce tht the continuous mine is ble to move fowds nd bckwds is 200 m between the e end of the mine nd the min section belt conveyo. A mximum but continuous mteil flow of 500m3/opeting hou is thus gunteed. necessy oof nd ib nchos to keep the cut section pemnently secue fo the mining pocess nd futue ccess. The mteil hndling pocess between the continuous bolte mine nd the pemnently instlled min undegound conveyo system is done vi the continuous hulge system. A hoppe c is nchoed to nd cts s the mechnism fo dvncing nd eteting the hulge system. It is hyduliclly diven vi tcks nd poweed by its on-bod hydulic system. (Figue 4.) The hoppe c follows the continuous bolte mine nd eceives the cut mteil fom it nd tnspots it fo futhe hndling though to the bck of the hoppe c vi chin conveyos. Due to the fct tht the mining pocess delives mteil sizes in ll diffeent dimensions, n on-bod ock beke will educe the mteil size to ound 70 mm fo impoved hndling nd mnging downstem. The hoppe c, when dvncing fowd, pulls n ppoximtely 200 m fixed length SICON conveyo belt system behind, which consists of loding sttion, the ctul SICON conveyo nd dischge sttion t the e end of the conveyo. Continuous mining opetion The cutting/mining pocess is pefomed by continuous bolte mine (Figue 3), which cuts the mteil deposit nd tnsfes the cut mteil vi on-bod conveyo systems to the bck of the mchine. Thee it is dischged into the continuous hulge system. The bolte mine lso instlls the Figue 4 Hoppe c 800 DECEMBER 2006 VOLUME 106 NON-REFEREED PAPER The Jounl of The Southen Aficn Institute of Mining nd Metllugy

3 Innovtive concepts in undegound mteils hndling The Sicon conveying system is suspended fom wheel mounted bckets, which un on oof mounted tubul monoil system. This system is instlled by the hoppe c. The dill ig, ll the monoil tubes nd ll mteils necessy to instll the monoil system e locted nd stoed on the hoppe c. The SICON conveyo system is tedop shped conveyo, which fully encloses the mteil nd gives the conveyo, bsed on its design, the bility to un ound vey tight cones of ound 6 m dius. (Figue 6.) The bility nd flexibility of this continuous hulge system going ound such tight cones gives the system the leding edge in the undegound mket plce. The hoppe c dischges the mined mteil into the SICON conveyo vi loding sttion. Inside the loding Sttion the enclosed SICON conveyo belt is opened up nd filled vi loding funnel nd closed gin fo the full conveying length. The hoppe c hs the bility to lod into the loding sttion though ll mnoeuves, even duing going though the 6 m tuns. (Figue 7.) The dive sttion (40kW) of the SICON Conveyo is n integl pt of the loding sttion. At the hed end of the SICON conveyo the dischge Sttion tnsfes the mined mteil onto the min undegound mteil hndling system, which in the cse of col mine will typiclly be the section conveyo. The SICON belt is opened up gin within the dischge sttion. Thee it is lso tuned ove to empty the belt. Afte tht the belt is fomed bck into the te-dop shpe nd etuned bck to the loding sttion in pllel stnd to the loded conveyo belt side. (Figue 8.) The tensioning of the SICON conveyo system is chieved by fequency contolled winch, which is locted t the hed of the continuous hulge system. Duing the fowd motion the conveyo system is pulled by the hoppe c ginst the foce of the winch nd on the evese motion the winch pulls the conveyo system bck ginst the esistnce of the hoppe c. Duing ll the movements of the mining pocess, the continuous hulge system stys opetionl nd is ble to tnsfe mteil fom the mining fce to the section conveyo. J o u n l P p e Figue 5 Monoil system Figue 6 SICON conveyo system Figue 7 Loding sttion The Jounl of The Southen Aficn Institute of Mining nd Metllugy VOLUME 106 NON-REFEREED PAPER DECEMBER

4 Innovtive concepts in undegound mteils hndling Figue 8 SICON belt Step 1 Step 2 Step 3 Step 4 Figue 9 Stt-up length One 200 m Mining/Cutting Sequence Reloction of the continuous hulge system At the end of one mining/cutting sequence of bout 200 m distnce fom the min section conveyo, the whole system is elocted with the hoppe c to its new stt-up e. Fo this the winch will be etcted nd detched fom its nchoing. The full eloction pocess is pefomed vi the monoil system. The stt-up length of the continuous hulge system (including the continuous mine) is ppoximtely 220 metes. This will give the continuous hulge system ech of bout 200 m fom the min section conveyo fo fully flexible cutting/mining pocess. (Figue 9.) The minimum opeting height is limited to 2200 mm nd the width to mm. Punch mining system Genel desciption The punch mining system seves the equiement to mine undegound minel deposits in wy tht cuts shot stight distnces (punches) into the deposits, tking only shot peiod of time, nd to hve the complete mining system etieved out of those finished punches, befoe pemnent stt contol mesuements (oof/ib bolts) become necessy. (Figues 10 nd 11.) Those shot stight distnces, o so-clled punches e cuently limited to length of 200 metes nd cn be cut/mined within peiod of 2 two 8-hou shifts, whees the etieving of the whole system, including new set-up fo new punch in n djcent section, will tke 1 one 8-hou shift. The punch mining system combines continuous mining mchine, fo exmple the Alpine bolte mine ABM10 nd continuous stight line conveyo system, to cut col o oe deposit nd to tnspot the mined mteil fom the cutting fce to the pemnently instlled min undegound mteil hndling system, which cles the mteil out of the undegound section. Detiled desciption Stt contol nd ventiltion mesues of undegound mining sections e vey time nd money consuming. 802 DECEMBER 2006 VOLUME 106 NON-REFEREED PAPER The Jounl of The Southen Aficn Institute of Mining nd Metllugy

5 Innovtive concepts in undegound mteils hndling Figue 10 Punch mining system Right Hnd Recovey Wy Middle Hnd Recovey Wy Left Hnd Recovey Wy Minel Deposit This pidly mined nd tempoy secued newly cut section must not be enteed by nybody fte ll equipment nd pesonnel hd been emoved. In cse this section hs to be enteed in the futue, pemnent stt contol mesues hve to be instlled pio to enteing nd the ventiltion equiements hve to be fulfilled. Punch mining opetion The cutting/mining pocess is pefomed by continuous bolte mine, which cuts the mteil deposit nd tnsfes the cut mteil vi on-bod conveyo systems to the bck of the mchine. Thee it is hnded ove to the stight line continuous hulge system. The bolte mine is lso instlls the necessy oof nd ib nchos just to keep the cut section tempoily secue fo the time it tkes to mine nd etieve. The mteil hndling pocess between the continuous bolte mine nd the pemnently instlled min undegound conveyo system is done vi stight line continuous hulge system. A hoppe c cts s the dvncing system fo the hulge system. It is hyduliclly diven vi tcks nd poweed by the continuous mine s hydulic system vi two hydulic hose connections (pessue nd tnk line). (Figue 13.) J o u n l P p e Min Undegound Conveyo next Punch 600 feet ledy mined Punch Figue 12 Continuous bolte mine Figue 11 Punch mining Whees the ventiltion of the newly cut sections is of utmost impotnce duing the mining pocess (extction of gses of ny kind), the stt contol in the likes of pemnent oof nd ib nchos cn be skipped, if the mining pocess is finished nd ll equipment nd pesonnel hve left the newly cut section (one mining sequence) within, by lw, set peiod of time (i.e within 24 hous). Only shot-tem o tempoy stt contol systems will be instlled, which secue the opetion fo the time it tkes to mine nd etieve the whole system. Figue 13 Hoppe c The Jounl of The Southen Aficn Institute of Mining nd Metllugy VOLUME 106 NON-REFEREED PAPER DECEMBER

6 Innovtive concepts in undegound mteils hndling One exmple of stt-up section set-up is to hve thee odwy ngement long the whole length of the, minel deposit to be extcted. Left-hnd odwy contining the min undegound conveyo nd fo ventiltion Middle odwy fo intemedite stoge (mteil, tnsfomes, etc.) nd fo ventiltion puposes Right-hnd odwy fo eloction (continuous mine nd hulge system) nd fo ventiltion puposes. Figue 14 Hoppe c Figue 16 Dive/tnsfe sttion Figue 15 Loop-tke-up system The hoppe c follows the continuous bolte mine nd eceive the cut mteil fom it. The necessy dditionl conveyo belt stuctues, including the cy nd etun olles fo the full length of one punch, e stoed inside the hoppe c nd e elesed in distnces of ppoximtely 2.6 metes when the hoppe c dvnces. (Figue 14.) The hoppe c, when dvncing fowd, pulls the dditionl conveyo belt out of loop-tke-up system, sitting t the othe end of the hulge system. The loop-tke-up system cn stoe ppoximtely 160 metes of conveyo belt, which gives n dvncing distnce of bout 80 metes. The dditionl conveyo belt length necessy to ech the 200 mete mk is stoed in the fom of 2 belt olls t the font of the loop-tke-up system nd will be pulled into the looptke-up vi on-bod hydulic motos, belt clmping device nd the conveyo belt tensioning winch. Fo eloction puposes, the Loop-Tke-Up system is tck mounted nd divided into sections, which e individully hinged to mnoeuve ound cones. (Figue 15.) The dive/tnsfe sttion (45 kw) combined with the tnsfe chute connects the hulge system to the min undegound conveyo system. It sits t the end of the stight line continuous hulge system. This system component is lso tck diven. (Figue 16.) The stt-up length of the punch mining system (including the continuous mine) is ppoximtely 55 metes. (Figue 17.) Figue 17 Stt-up length of the punch mining system 804 DECEMBER 2006 VOLUME 106 NON-REFEREED PAPER The Jounl of The Southen Aficn Institute of Mining nd Metllugy

7 Innovtive concepts in undegound mteils hndling J o u n l Figue 18 Punch mining system P p e Min Undegound Conveyo Right Hnd Recovey Wy Middle Rod Wy Left Hnd Rod Wy next Punch ledy mined Punch Minel Deposit Figue 19 Retieving/eloction sequence Retieving/eloction opetion Afte finlizing the 200 mete punch, the mining system hs to be etieved out of the section, elocted nd set up fo new 200 mete cutting/mining sequence. Fo this the continuous bolte mine nd the hoppe c will etun to thei stting position, collecting ll conveyo stuctue (bck into the stoge e of the hoppe c) on thei wy bck nd lso eeling the conveyo belt suplus bck onto the olls vi on-bod hydulic diven eeles. Bck in thei stt-up position nd theefoe out of the ltest cut punch, the whole punch mining system will be split by septing the continuous bolte mine fom the hoppe c (hoppe c will be connected to the hydulic system of the conveyo system). The two split pts will mnoeuve individully up the ight-hnd odwy by elesing ll hinge points of the conveyo system to give the flexibility to get ound the cones. (Figue 18.) The system will move up the ight-hnd odwy till the dive/tnsfe sttion is t the sme height s the next sttup odwy, nd will then evese bckwds towds the min undegound conveyo till the tnsfe chute nd the min undegound conveyo line up. In this position the continuous bolte mine s well s the hoppe c will be fully in line with the new stt-up odwy. The continuous bolte mine nd the hoppe c will now move fowds till stnding t the new cutting fce nd the new cutting/mining sequence, punch, cn stt in the bove descibed wy. Conclusion Both systems e scheduled fo extensive field tils the ltte pt of this ye with poduction pplictions ely in The Jounl of The Southen Aficn Institute of Mining nd Metllugy VOLUME 106 NON-REFEREED PAPER DECEMBER

8 806 DECEMBER 2006 VOLUME 106 NON-REFEREED PAPER The Jounl of The Southen Aficn Institute of Mining nd Metllugy