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By Michael Olmsted

Inspection of boreholes prior to blasting can result in cost reductions as well as increases in efficiency and safety. Until recently, borehole inspection was performed in two manners. For simple inspections, a flashlight was used to view the upper part of the hole. More thorough inspections were performed with long tool strings developed for oil field applications. Borehole inspection tools developed specifically for mining and blasting applications have now been developed. Video Cameras developed for borehole inspection have been in service for several years. Now measurement tools are available, developed specifically for mining.

Jan 1, 2000

By John H. Weigand, Stephen V. Crum

"VIBRONICS, INC. instrumented and monitored a residential structure for response to,blasting at aMidwestern surface coal operation. The residence was owned by the mining company and was extremely close to the operation. Blasting was conducted within 120 feet (36.5 meters) of the test structure. Up to seventeen (17), four (4)-channel seismographs were used during the monitoring period. The basement walls and floor were monitored. VIBRONICS, INC. also monitored a brick chimney in the basement and attic. Structural responses were then compared to outside vibration measurements taken in the soil near the foundation."

Jan 1, 1998

By Sam Kangwa, Thomson Sinkala

In the mining industry, drilling accuracy has a significant effect on the economy of operations. In this paper, results from the Nkana Division of the former Zambia Consolidated Copper Mines are presented. For the stope investigated, it was found that the extra operational costs alone were 462% of the planned costs! Clearly, there is more than good reason to pay attention to drilling of good quality holes.

Jan 1, 2004

By Dominic Orf, Gregory Poole

On December 12, 2018 at 4:14 AM EST, an earthquake registering a 4.4 magnitude on the Richter Scale occurred in central Tennessee. According to a survey posted on the USGS website, this earthquake was felt throughout the southeast and even as far away as Arnold Nebraska. That’s over 900 miles (1,448 kilometers) from the epicenter. We recorded the vibrations from this earthquake on 44 different seismographs that were set up with remote access to continuously monitor vibrations from blasting activities. Having this data gave us an opportunity to compare the vibrations caused by earthquakes and blasting. A simple observation of the amplitudes, frequencies, and durations is enough to notice that vibrations from earthquakes are very different than vibrations caused by blasting in mining and construction. We were also able to observe the dissipation of the vibrations from the earthquake and see if the low frequencies, that are typical of earthquakes, dissipate at a consistent rate. Regression calculations were performed in order to see if there was a good data fit and if a specific vibration prediction could be made based on the magnitude of an earthquake. “How does quarry/mining/construction blasting compare to the Richter Scale?” This is a very common question that we get from homeowners when discussing vibrations due to blasting activities. This paper is intended to provide some simple answers for such a complicated question. Both the Richter and Mercalli scales are compared to the particle velocities as they were recorded from this earthquake.

By Iván E, Alex Araya Jofre, Jean Guiroux Toro, Eduardo Valdés Guerra

Currently, it is important for companies to have controlled mining operations and adhere to production schedules. To achieve this, one of the key factors is maintaining high reliability in the P&T process, primarily the opening of ore stope, which could be delayed due to any unplanned or uncontrolled problem. These ore stope opening processes, whose main activity is generating free face, are a very important pillar for future mine planning. The possibility of ensuring their opening brings a series of downstream benefits: safety, economics, productivity, and compliance and adherence to plans. The process under discussion consists of developing free faces in a single blasting event. This will help us leverage greater reliability for overall production operation plans, reduce construction times, and open up opportunities for downstream improvements in the production process, considering technical factors in P&T designs. This study presents a developed methodology and shows the results of its implementation in ten (18) single-event free face blasts. The analysis includes cavity geometry, geology, rock qualities, drilling deviations, and the blasting strategy implemented for each event. The methodology used considered material fluffing processes, the actual drilling trajectory, the initiation sequence, QA/QC during explosive loading, monitoring instrumentation (vibrations), and VOD recording, among others. As a result, out of a total of 18 free-face events blasts in a single event, 16 were successful and two achieved 90% efficiency, reducing the stope's production start-up time by 50% compared to current operations. By implementing free face blasting in a single event, there are savings in operating costs, increased productivity of the mining equipment, and improved adherence to production plans. For applications with greater heights of free faces, where blasting cannot be carried out in a single event, we should consider performing them in two stages using wireless detonators already available on the market for mining operations.

Jan 26, 2026

By A T. Spathis

The 11th International Symposium on Rock Fragmentation by Blasting (FRAGBLAST 11) was held in Sydney, Australia, between 24-26 August, 2015. The 93 papers, including six keynote presentations, covered exciting and practical topics in 20 sessions within 12 themes. Just fewer than 300 delegates from 27 countries attended. Four workshops were conducted on the weekend prior to the symposium, with three field visits after the symposium to Sydney region quarries, the Hunter Valley coal mining region, and the Kalgoorlie gold mining region. Delegates had the opportunity to visit the exhibition areas that showcased the latest products, software, hardware and systems in blasting technology. The keynote addresses were held in plenary sessions and set the tone for the parallel sessions that followed. They spanned the dynamics of the mining industry, the detonics of explosives, the interaction of stress waves and fracture mechanics in fragmentation, wall control blasting, and the importance of education and engineering for full process optimisation.

Jan 1, 2015

By Marlyn King, Kevin Peterson

Power Decks are voids created in the bottom of the borehole through the use of a suspended Super Plug. Explosive energy is started downward at initiation creating high pressures which find relief at the comers of the borehole cylinder in the bottom of the hole. This relief creates a horizontal break to the neighboring boreholes - the same effect as presplitting. This “presplit” represents a change of mass to.the explosive energy,and it is reflected upward in the more efficient form of tensile waves. This provides better use of the explosive energy than compression waves. This technique has created a new way of looking at the ways that explosive energy is transported through the rock mass.

Jan 1, 2002

By Randall Wheeler, R. Frank Chiappetta

2000 HIGH-TECH SEMINAR Blasting Technology, Instrumentation. and Explosives Applications - Orlando, Florida, USA July 24 - 27,200O 2000 BAI - PROTECTION AGAINST LITIGATION WITH GOOD PRE-BLAST SURVEYS, DAMAGE INSPECTIONS AND RECORD KEEPING 1 of 65 Good Record Keeping is Essential for: 1 ) Compliance with any prevailing Local, State or Federal Regulations, ordinances and permits. 2 ) Protection against potential litigation. 3 ) Balancing explosive consumption, use & costs. 4 ) Use in blast designs.5 ) Blast diagnostics & troubleshooting good/bad shots.

Jan 1, 2000

By Ola Lindahl, Mark Irving, John Hutchings

"Blasting is a process starting with a geometric description of the block of rock and ending with a pileof fragmented material. A key step in improving the productivity and quality control over the processis the integration of blast planning software, explosive delivery control systems, and blast recordingwithin one seamless customer solution."

Jan 1, 1997

By Brian W. Stump, David P. Anderson, John Wiegand

Mining explosions are designed for a variety of purposes including the fragmentation and movement of materials. The blast design is dependent on the particular application intended and the material properties of the rock. The range of mining applications from hard rock quarrying to coal exposure to mineral recovery leads to a great variety of blasting practices.

Jan 1, 1997

By Richard E. Danell

"There are a variety of approaches for wall control blasting in open pit mining operations. Safety forworking in the pit is the principal benefit. There are also a number of economic and productivitybenefits when appropriate techniques are used. The purpose and requirements of wall control blasting can vary quite significantly for different operations. When considering blast design, geology, geotechnical factors, drilling, explosives, economics and blasting history are all part of the engineering design process. In many operations, there is a high reliance on blasting history and economics for determining wall control blasting measures. This presentation outlines approaches that broaden the design process and discusses their advantages."

Jan 1, 1997

By Diogo Fonseca, José Manuel, Nuno Fernandes, Blessing Taiwo

This research focuses on enhancing the synergy between blasting and primary crushing operations in quarries. A blast operation at dstgroup aggregate quarry in northern Portugal was simulated to fine-tune blasting techniques aimed at optimizing fragmentation indicators. The methodology involves conducting precise blast drill hole surveys, generating detailed terrain 3D models, and integrating these models into blast simulation software to enhance accuracy and optimize production efficiency. The study applies these simulations to test blasts, evaluating improvements in cost-effectiveness, crusher power consumption, and fragmentation efficiency using both aerial and terrestrial image analysis technology. The quarry key performance indicators (KPIs) guide the blast design simulations, ensuring practicality and relevance. The case study blast revealed that implementing optimum blasting techniques can enhance crusher throughput, reduce operational costs, and improve safety. This paper is part one of a three-part technical series where we aim to create a sampling procedure and establish a reliable baseline for the current state of operation. This baseline will be used in subsequent follow-up technical papers to make recommendations and improvements. The outcome of this study provides a framework for quarry operations seeking to enhance their efficiency.

Jan 21, 2025

By Tom Treleaven, Andrew Williams

Several contracts were let in Greenwich, Connecticut, for the installation of a sanitary sewer. The majority of the excavation was in rock and involved numerous challenges due to the following conditions:

Jan 1, 2003

By Stanton Johnson

Africa has a long history of mining and has been one’of the world’s greatest sources of gold and other mineral resources since the days of the Egyptian pharaohs. Mining in Africa has been dominated by South Africa since World War II. However, in the past 10 to 15 years, other African countries are beginning to slowly catch up with South Africa. Ghana, formerly called the “Gold Coast” is located on the West Coast of Africa. Ghana has been involved in mining activities for well over 100 years. Most of the mining activities centered on the mining of gold and were to a large extent limited to underground mining methods. With a more liberal economic policy regarding the exploration and exploitation of Ghana’s mineral resources, mining activities are beginning to evolve to a much larger scale. Drilling and blasting which is an important aspect of this evolution is also changing due to the involvement of foreign-based mining and explosives companies.

Jan 1, 1998

By William Stewart

Recitations were taking place in the red schoolhouse at Orneville, Maine. It was winter and the snow lay deep on the ground, but some of the scholars were in bare feet, and only half as many hats hung on the pegs as there were potential wearers in the seats. That was forty years ago; and the pioneers of northern New England were more noted for their industry than for their possession of the fruits of it.

Jan 1, 2007

By Steve Dillingham

Whenever misfired holes or portions of misfired holes remain after a blast is fired, a hazardous situation exists until the unfired explosive materials have been disposed of properly. Yet, there are so many factors that can contribute to misfires that it is impossible to give blanket instructions on how to handle them. To complicate matters, misfires today are rare due to reliable blasting products. As such, it isn’t very surprising that many blasters have never had to deal with a misf i re condition. While the likelihood of a misfire occurrence is minimal, you should always be pre p a red to handle a misfire should you be involved in such an event. To begin, every blaster and blasting org a n i z a t i o n should develop a misfire policy which contains the company’s safe operating pro c e d u res, emergency contact list, as well as any regulatory compliance re q u i re m e n t s . Tailgate and/or company-wide safety meetings should communicate the company’s contingent misfire pro c ed u res and any special site-specific precautions BEFORE the start of any project.

Jan 1, 2004

By Bibhu Mohanty, Sheng Huang

Accurate measure of fragment size distribution is a key objective in all blasting and crushing operations. Several generic distribution functions have been devised to describe the degree of fragmentation for the representative range of fragments from selected measurements. The application of four distribution functions, i.e. Rosin-Rammler, Swebrec, Grady and Gilvarry, in describing fragment size distribution of impact-induced fragmentation of a limestone rock has been investigated. A modified Hopkinson Pressure Bar experimental set-up is used to control both impact velocity and energy input into the target rock. The feed size in the sample holder is varied from 6.35mm to 15.88mm in three ranges and the impact velocity up to 14m/s. The size distribution in the product is determined by sieve analysis for a range of impacts. The experimental results are fitted to the four distribution functions to examine their relative accuracy and reliability.

Jan 1, 2016

By William D. Hissem

While much technology has been developed and brought to bear in the area of blasting applications, the foundation work required for success in the muck pile begins with the drilling program.

Jan 1, 1997

By W. J. Birch, R. Farnfield, S. Hosein, C. Johnson

Modern smart phones include accelerometers based on MEMS (Micro Electro Mechanical System) technology giving the possibility to measure both acceleration and orientation. The widespread use of such phones has driven technological development to such a degree that it is now possible to obtain a triaxial accelerometer unit, that also include signal conditioning and analogue to digital conversion, in a package smaller than 1 cm2 (1/2 sq.in) for a relatively low cost.

Feb 6, 2023

By Jose a. Sanchidrian, Ramon G. Eguren, Javier L. Amigo

On December 2013 a MEMU exploded at a blasting site in Norway, after burning for more than two hours. This paper describes the analyses made to determine the actual yield of the explosion, the lessons learned from the event and the actions taken as a consequence. The conclusions of the analysis were the following: - The yield of the explosion was 650-1450 kg TNT. In terms of AN and ANE they correspond to 1300 – 3700 kg AN, or 950 – 2450 kg ANE or ANE/AN blend. These quantities are 8 to 31 % of the explosive precursors in the truck. The burning of the truck and its load for two and a half hours had consumed more than two thirds (perhaps up to 90 %) of the explosive precursor material.

Jan 1, 2016