Numerical modeling of rockmass behaviour due to blasting operations in underground mines

TL;DR

This paper presents a numerical model to analyze how controlling seismic wave frequencies during blasting can improve seismic hazard mitigation in underground mines, addressing a gap in current design practices.

Contribution

It introduces a 3D FEM simulation approach to study the effect of seismic wave frequency control in blasting operations for underground mines.

Findings

Seismic wave frequency control can enhance blasting effectiveness.

Current detonator technology limits frequency precision.

Numerical models can predict seismic responses to blasting.

Abstract

Antropogenic seismicity is one of the most important geomechanical hazard encountered in Polish deep copper mines. Obviously, it may have a negative impact on the peoples safety and the production process. In such circumstances, a number of both active and passive prevention measures have been implemented in the mines, at least partially. One of the most effective, applied for many years, active means used for seismic hazard reduction, is multi-faces blasting works which by assumption should result in release of strain energy accumulated in the rock mass by inducing seismic events in the areas of high strain concentrations. However, at the stage of blasting works design process, a most of attention is paid rather on the vibration amplitude increasing than on the effect of its frequencies. In result, one of the basic parameters of induced seismic waves, which is the frequency of vibrations is usually omitted. Nowadays, the frequency of the seismic wave initiated by firing of group of faces is basically out of control due to the low accuracy of detonators utilized today. Taking the above into account, the possibility of increasing the effectiveness of blasting provocation by controlling the frequency of induced seismic waves was analysed as the effect of the frequencies values assumed to be the dominating ones, around which the computer based 3D FEM solutions of the blasting operation has been simulated.