surface mine blast design and consultant system

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SCHECK, D.E., CHATI'ERJEE, P.K. and WEI SUN, M.S. Surface mille blast design and consultant system.

APCOM 87. Proc«dings of the Twen tieth In tcrn"liona l Symposium on the Application of Computers and

Malhematies in the Mineral Industries. Vo lume J: Mining. Johannesburg, SAIMM, 1987. pp . 181- 188.

Surface Mine Blast Design and Consultant System

D.E. SCHECK, P.K. CHATIERJEE and M.S. WEI SUN

Department of industrial Systems an d Design Engineering, Ohio University, Athens, Ohio, USA

A computer-aided blast design collsultanL system has been developed. The

software consists of two modules: one uses theoretical and empirical formulae

and pro cedures to design a blast based on user supplied geological Hnd mechan

ical data, while the other is an expert sys lem that analY7.es blast vibration pro

blems and recom mends remedial ac tion using k.no wledge based rules. The

system is currently undergoing field eva luation.

Introduction

The me thods of b la s t ing overburden

i n surface coa l mines vary with the

charac te r i s t ic s of the formation,

i t s depth, an d the type of mechani-

ca l equipment ava i l ab l e fo r i t s

s ubsequent removal. Since the s i ze

and depth of dr il l holes , d r i ll ing

pat te rn , grade and type of explo

s ives , and the load i ng and f i r ing

techniques wi l l have a s i gni f ican t

impact on the overa l l product ivi ty

of the min ing operat ion as well as

the adve rse effec ts on the sur round

ing env i ronment , the need ex i s t s for

a system to des ign b las t s in accor

dance with good pra c t i ce and to

identi fy solut ions to blas t ing prob

l ems .

Blas t design procedures have been

reduced to formulae and an a lgor i th -

~ i c process1 ,2 wh ich can be pro

grammed fo r a computer using conven

t ion a l procedural language, Since

the procedures are based on i deal -

ized condi t i ons, the re wi l l always

be some d is crepancy b etween design

expec ta t ions an d the observed

resul t s . When th i s discrepancy i s

s ign i f i can t , blas t problems may

become severe , fo r examp l e , vibra

t ion levels and a i rb l a s t l evels can

exceed ac ceptable l eve ls . I f th i s

s i tua t ion occurs , ad jus tments to the

bla s t design must be made . Relat ing

bl as t e f fec t s to spec i f ic des ign

parame te rs may be d i f f icult s ince

some resu lts such as excessive back

break or poor fragmentation can only

be desc r ibed subject ively_

In te rp re t ing these observed

res ul t s , iden t i fy i ng the cause and

suggest ing remedial act ions of ten

requi res th e advice of a n exper

ienced , professional blas t ing engi-

neer. 3 since such persons may no t

be readi ly avai lable or too expen -

sive

t he

a continual bas is ,o use on

poss i b i l i t y of captur ing the

reducing it to com

very ap pea l i ng. The

of recent l y developed

expert ise and

puter code i s

ava i l ab i l i ty

a r t i f i c i a l in t e l l igence (AI) s o f t

ware too l s has made such a task a

feas ible e n d e a v ~ r 4 / 5Numerous p rac t ic3 1 appl ica t ions of

AI techno l ogy have emerged

SU RFACE MINE BLAST DES IGN AND CONSULTANT SYSTEM ISI

•



recen t ly . 6 Of th e th ree bas ic AI

categor ies (exper t systems, natura l -

language systems, and

sys tems fo r

touch) , exper t

ing p rac t i ce .

vi s ion ,

systems

Expert

percept ion

speech , and

are the lead

systems areprograms t h a t use humanl i k e reason

ing processes to solve problems in a

p a r t i cu l a r appl ica t ion area . These

programmed reasoning processes a re

const ruc ted from experie n t i a l human

knowledge or exper t i se which i s

encoded in a program s t ruc tu re

ca l led

encoded

a knowledge base. This

knowledge and

mechanism are reduced

reasoning

to a se t of

ru le s t h a t could be programmed in a

conventiona l high l eve l language,

but spec ia l purpose languages, such

as LISP or Prolog, make program

development a much eas i e r task .

This paper out l ines the use of a

higher l eve l language (Golden LISP)

to develop an exper t system fo r

su r fa ce mine b l a s t design.

Objective

The objec t ive of th i s inves t iga -

t ion was to develop an in te rac t ive

b l a s t des ign program t h a t guides the

user through the var ious b l a s t

des i gn s t eps and provides a n

' exper t '

r e s u l t s

system to evaluate the

of p o s t -b l a s t vibra t ion anda i rb l a s t observa t ions . The t h ree

major subgoals of t h i s pro jec t were:

1. To develop an i n t e rac t iv e compute r program to help the user

to design a b l a s t using empir i ca l formulae.

2. To obta in exper t knowledge to

bui ld a knowledge base fo r thediagnos is of b l a s t vibra t ion

problems .3. To cons t ruc t a consul ta t ive

exper t system which i s capableof using exper t knowladge to

discover def ic iences in a b l a s t

182

design and of fe r exper t advicebasedt ions .

The need

re la tes to

the b l a s t

Because the

on p o s t -b l a s t observa-

fo r the th i rd subgoal

the sub jec t ive nature of

evaluat ion process .

number of fac tors which

can cause poor blas t ing r e s u l t s i s

very la rge and each fac to r can have

many leve l s , a s imple procedure to

i d en t i fy the cause of a b l a s t prob-

lem i s not poss ib le . In addi t ion ,

symptoms of a poor b l a s t a re usual ly

described qual i t a t ive ly because of

the di f f i cu l ty of obta in ing quant i

t a t ive measures. Therefore , it i s

impract ica l to develop a t o t a l ly

mathematically based b l a s t evalua

t ion procedure.

s ince the diagnos is o f a blas t ing

problem r e l i e s heavi ly on personal

of annowledge and

exper t to reach a

experience

conclus ion, exper t

op inion i s probably th e only prac t i

ca l approach to solve such a mul t i

var iable problem. I f t h i s exper t i se

i s imbedded in an exper t system

program, the system could prompt the

user to descr ibe the b l a s t resu l t s

and the computer could reach conclu -

s ions based on the s tored informa-

t i o n . This process i s a consu l t a t ive

exper t sys tem, and the ru les form a

knowledge base.

System design

The system cons i s t s of tw o di s '

t i n c t modules as shown in Figure 1 .

One module i s an i n t e rac t iv e program

t h a t ass i s t s th e user in des igning a

blas t . Theore t ica l and empir ica l

formulae are the bas i s of the

des ign, and no knowledge based

exper t system i s required. The

other module i s a consu l tan t system

MINING: EXPERT SYSTEMS IN MI NING

F



SURFACE MINE BLAST DESIGN & CONSULTANT

SYSTEM

BLAST DESIGN EXPERT CONSULTANT FOR

r----- VIBRATION PROBLEMSBurden

Hole Diameter,

StemmingHole Depth

CHECK SEISMOGRAPHIC

READING

I ,PATTERN DESIGN BLAST DESIGN ANALYSIS

Layout, Spacing, Actual Values v.s.Time delay Theoretical Values

, , ,PRIMER & BOOSTER EXPERT DIAGNOSIS REDESIGN

Number, Location,Explosive

Initiation , Itemming

,PREDETERMINE

FRAGMENT SIZE

SpacingKNOW-

Stiffness RatioLEDGE

ExplosiveBurden

BASE

__

[SAVE D E S I G ~ FILEJ ,EXPERT DIAGNOSIS ADVICE

FIGURE I. SUrracc mine blast des ign and consultant system

to diag nos e apparent blas t ing prob

lems based on post - bla s t observa -

empir ical s tud i es which are well

documented in the l i t e ra tu re . A

t ions. The tw o module s can be used

independen t l y or sequent ially . I f

the blas t was designed outs ide the

program, the consu l tan t module wil l

ask th e use r t o en te r th e design

parameters and r e l a t ed da ta . Th e

system f i r s t checks to see wh e the r

the design fol lows good prac t i ce

before a t t emp t in g to resolve any

apparent prob l ems.

The b l a s t des ig n module uses gen

era l ly accepted ru l es t h a t have been

develop ed from t h eo re t i ca l and

t yp ica l menu from these modules i s

given in Figure 2 . After so l ic i t ing

t he requ i red informat ion f r om the

user, the system generates a r ecom

mended design such as the parameters

shown in Figure J . I nteract ive

graphics help the user in t erpre t th e

des ign.

The consul ta t ive modul e i s a t rue

ru l e-based exper t system and i s

d i f fe ren t f r om the design modul e .

Th e post-b l a s t analys i s system i s

l imi ted t o v ib ra t ion e f f ec t s . The

SURFACE MINE BLAST DESIGN AND CONSULTANT SYSTEM 183



184

PROGRAM MENU

1.BLAST DESIGN

2. PATTERN DESIGN

3. PRIMER AND BOOSTER SELECTION

4. PREDETERMINE FRAGMENT SIZE

5. SAVE THE DESIGN RESULTS

6. BLASTING PROBLEM CONSULTATION

7. ABORT THE SESSION

(PLEASE INPUT THE NUMBER OF DESIRED FUNCTION)

YOUR INPUT

FIGURE 2. A typical design menu

BLAST DESIGN PARAMETERS

ROCK TYPE: SHALE

EXPLOSIVE TO BE USED: POURED ANFO

BENCH HEIGHT: 120 (FT)

1. STIFFNESS RATIO = 4

2. BURDEN = 32 (FT)

3. CHARGE DIAMETER = 15 (INCHES)

4. STEMMING LENGTH = 22 (FT)NOTE: SMALLER STEMMING LENGTH COULD BE USED.

AVERAGE SIZE OF STEMMING MATERIAL = 0.75(INCHES)

5. BLASTHOLE DEPTH = 120 (FT)

6. SUBDRILL = 0 (FT)

IF NOT SATISFIED, ENTER <R> TO REDESIGN OTHERWISE,ENTER <M> TO RETURN TO THE MAIN MENU.

FIGURE 3. Recommended design parameters

MINING: EXPERT SYSTEMS IN MINING



THIS IS AN INTERACTIVE PROGRAM. YOU WILL BE ASKED TO

ANSWER QUESTIONS TO RESOLVE YOUR BLAST PROBLEM.

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE OF VIBRATION?1. SEISMOGRAPH READING.

2. HUMAN COMPLAINTS.

»2

IS A SEISMOGRAPH READING AVAILABLE?

1. READING IS AVAILABLE.

2. READING IS NOT AVAILABLE.

»1

IS THE READING OK?

1. READING IS OK.

2. READING IS NOT OK.

»2

FIGURE 4. Vibration problem ques[ionaire

system f i r s t asks a se t of quest ion s

as shown in Figure 4, to iden t i f y

tha t a v i brat ion problem ac tua l ly

exis t s . I f t he data are not conclu-

s ive , the system recommends t hat the

user observe another blas t to ensure

t ha t val id seismograph readings are

obtained .

I f the da ta i nd i c a te t ha t a p r ob

lem does indeed ex i s t , the system

will ask fo r the design parameters

and then generate a recommended

des ign using the b las t design

mod u le . The actua l versus des igned

values are l i s t ed and s ign i f i can t

disc repanc ie s highl igh ted . Th e user

~ h e n has the option to modify the

design to meet the suggested values

and t ry another bla s t or proceed to

the diagnostic par t of the module.

A port ion of the vibrat ion problem

ver i f i ca t i on logic flow char t is

gi ve n in Figu 're 5, several steps in

the diagnosis

Figure 6 .

proces s are shown in

Typical suggestions

app ear on the

in Figure 7. A

screen such as given

hard copy of the

recommendations i s a lso provided.

Discussion

The b las t design and consul tant

system is programmed in Golden LIS P

for th e IBM PC/AT a nd compat i b l es .

s ix hundred an d forty

required to run the

co l or graphics monitor

communicate with t he

display the re su l ts .

Kbytes are

program and a

is used to

user and to

The current

version of the consul tan t module

incorporates only vibrat ion re l ated

ef fec t s but t he system i s designed

for expans ion. Work i s continuing

on a segment to ana1yze fragmenta-

t ion prob1ems. 7

At

not

the present time the

been f ie ld proven.

system has

A blas t ing

SURFACE MINE BLAST DES IGN AND CONSULTANT SYSTEM 18'



186

VIBRATION PROBLEM DIAGNOSIS

What is the evidence of vibration?

r [ - - - - - - - - - - ~ - - - - - - - - - - - - [Human complaint Seismograph reading

1 I

Is a seismograph reading available? What s e i s ~ o g r a P h was used?

Ves _----'1'--_____ No I[

Is the reading ok?

1[

No_- ' j r . . ' - - -__ - '

Is there evidence of damage?

[

No[Do nothing

[

Ves[Is the damage severe?

Yes I No _ Do nothing

[

Analog

Tape

Vector sum

Bar graph

Trigger

Then: assume homogeneous rock and check for possibility of overlapping

waves.What is the distance between two holes? What Is the time delay?

If: the distance between two holes is less than the time delay between

the holes multiplied by the wave speed.

Then: the damage cannot be caused by the blast.

Otherwise: It is theoretically possible that overlapping waves caused

1he damage. Go to blast design analysis section.

FIGU RE 5. Vib ration logic chart

MINING: EXPERT SYSTEMS IN MINING



The expert knowledge has the following decreasing

priority:

o ___ 1. Initiation t : : \2

\2..J 2. -Stemming \.V3. Spacing

f : \ ~ 4. Stiffness f'7\o /5. Explosive \..V

6. Burden

(0 ~If : tempeiaturechanges eitherbetween 0 deg.F.

or above 90 deg.f .and explosive has

been stored overa period of time

under high humiditycondition.Then: cycling ofexplosive mighthave occured.Check if explosiveare functioning

properly.

QExplosive property change

t

If: A ~ F O was used,and rust colorednitrous oxide was

observed in dry holes.Then: more fuel oil

should be added toANFO mixture.

If: for some reason,

the fuel oil portioncannot be increased,

(this abnormal eventmay be due to excessivebooster).Then: boostershould be used.

If: ANFO w ~ s usedand black coloredfumes were

observed.Then: less fuel

oil should be used,

If: fuel oil cannotbe reduced andboosters areused,Then: moreboosters should be

used.

If: ANFO was used and rust cola red fumes wereobserved, and holes may be wet. Go to part A andrefer to the wet hole subsection,

FIGURE 6. Steps in a diagnostic proCC$S

SURFACE MINE BLAST DESIGN AND CONSULTANT SYSTEM 187



expert provided informa t ion fo r the

knowledg e base and has subjec t ive ly

eva lua ted the system's recommend-

a t ions . The sys t em has been pro -

v i ded to a b l a s t i ng serv i ce for

t he i r use and eva luat ion .

References

1. KONYA, C. J . and WALTER, SR.,E . J . Rock blas t ing . U.S. Depa r t ment of Transpo r tat ion , 1985.

2. ATCH ISON, T.e . Fragmen ta t ionpr inc ip les . Surface Min ing.Ameri ca n Ins t i tu te of Mining,Me ta l lu rg i ca l , a nd Petroleum

Engineers , I nc . , 1968.

3. DUVALL , W. I . AND DEV I NE, J .F .Avoid i ng damage by a i r bla s t sand ground vibrat ions frombla s t ing . Sur f ace Mi ning .

RULE ID l ASSERTS:

American In s t i t u t e o f Mining,Me t a l l u rg i ca l , and Pe t roleum

Engineers , I nc. , 196B .

4 . BUCHANAN, B.G. and SHORTLIFFE,E .H . Rule - based Expert SYstems .

Addison-Wesley Pub l i shingCom-

pany, Inc . , 1984 .

5 . RAUCH-HINDIN, W.8. Ar t i f i c i a lIn te l l igence in BusinesS,sc ience , and Industry . New Y o r ~Pr en t ice -Ha l l . Inc • . 1985 .

6 . WINSTON, P.H. and BROWN, R .H .Ar t i f i c i a l In t e l l igence: An MlT.Perspect ive , vol . 1. Cam-bridge, Mass, The MIT PReSs ,1979.

7 . GOZON, J .S. BRITTON, R.R . andFODO, J.D . predeterminingav e r age fragment s i ze: a c a ~ estudy. Soc ie ty of Mining Engl. -nee rs , Denver, Coloardo, p re pr in t , 1986 .

(INPUT <WHY> TO CHECK THE INFERENCE, <ENTER> TO CONTINUE)

188

POWDER LOAD PER DELAY SHOULD BE REDUCED.

WHYBECAUSE:

PARTICLE VELOCITY READ IS LESS THAN TWICE THE PREDICTED VALUE.

RULE 102 ASSERTS :


REDUCE THE POWDER LOAD PER DELAY TO THE RECOMMENDED AMOUNT

WHICH IS EQUAL TO THE SQUARE OF THE SENSOR DISTANCE DIVIDEDBY 50.

RULE 106 ASSERTS:(INPUT <WHY> TO CHECK THE INFERENCE, <ENTER> TO CONTINUE)

TIME DELAY SHOULD BE USED IF APPLICABLE.

RULE IDB ASSERTS:


SPECIFIC GRAVITY OF THE PRIMER SHOULD BE GREATER THEN 1.2 AND

DETONATION VELOCITY GREATER THAN 15000 FEET PER SEC. PRIMER

DIAMETER SHOULD ALSO BE GREATER THAN THE CRITICAL DIAMETER OF

THE MAIN CHARGE.

FIGURE 7. ConS\lltant expert advice

MIN ING: EXPERT SYSTEMS IN MI.I""J1NG

surface mine blast design and consultant system

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