The Mining Technology of a Thick Overburden Layer Covering a Group of Flat Dipping Coal Seams

S.I. Fomin and D.A. Vedrova

National Mineral Resources University, Saint Petersburg, Russia

Abstract. Horizontal mineral deposits with relatively thick sediment overburden advisable to practice using transtoptless overburden removal technology, that is using a powerful stripping equipment - draglines. The main advantage of this technology is the placement of overburden directly into cut goaf, significantly reducing the rented for the waste dumps disposing areas, and reduce the costs of mining - reclamation works. Keywords: dragline, reexcavation ratio, waste dumping in to the cut goaf, coal mine, mining bench, overburden.

1 Rising of Draglines Operating Parameters Expands the Scope of Direct Dumping Method Deposits Development Systems with Application Overburden Rehandling
Horizontal or flat dipping (up to 100) layers of minerals, which include most of the deposits of sedimentary origin, such as oil shale, coal, peat, clay, limestone, with a relatively thick capping of overlying rock are advisable to develop by using direct dumping method, that is using a powerful stripping equipment - draglines. The main advantage of this technology is the back feeling into void, what can significantly reduce the land area rented for disposing of waste dumps, and reduce the costs of mining-technical stage of reclamation. Due to the increasing complexity of the mining and geological conditions of field development (increasing depth of mining works and reduction of developed space parameters) and rising of draglines operating parameters expands the scope of direct dumping method deposits development systems with application overburden rehandling. Usually after the mining stope excavation in mined-out space of a quarry the free bottomhole bandwidth remains. For the opening of the following coal stope excavator ought to work out next overburden stope and dump the rock in the mined-out space. Due to the insufficient size of the overburden excavator and a limited amount of free space to dispose a waste rock, overburden backfills quarries face. To remove it, and increase the capacity of bottomhole excavator carries out rehandling of rock from the primary dump
7 6 S.I. Fomin and D.A. Vedrova

freeing up bandwidth between lower bench slope edge and the edge of final waste dump location [1]. An assessing indicator of the selected overburden bench mining process flowsheet is a rehandling ratio the parameter, that shows how much of the total amount of a waste rock was excavated several times (being rehandled). Under the optimal parameters of the process flowsheet reexcavation ratio must be less than unity. As a result of insufficient working radius of overburden excavators and mudslides of waste dump multiplicity of the rehandling ratio may be greater than 1 and up to 4. Economically acceptable rehandling ratio reh tr d reh k ( C ) /C , (1) Ctr, Cd, Creh - expenditures on 1 m3 of overburden removing with appliance of trucks transportation, by using of direct dumping method and rehandling costs respectively.

2 Development Schedule of Izykhsky Strip Mine

For cost-effective organization of production during the period of cut designing process flowsheet of overburden benches mining should be chosen according to the principle of the additional costs on rehandling reduction. To successfully

resolve this task it is necessary to take into account a number of operational parameters and indicators at drawing up of flowsheet process, such as: overburden fragmentation index, sustainable slope angle of coal and overburden benches, loosened overburden natural slope angle, final angle of stability for internal dump, and the parameters of the dragline working the overburden bench. Consider the sequence of the process flowsheet designing for developing of the group of coal seams on example of the strip mine Izykhsky, Khakassia Republic of Krasnoyarsk region, Russian Federation. The deposit is represented by a group of flat dipping (up to 90) hard coal seams with up to 5,8 m thickness. Interstratified layers of argillite and sandstone reach a thickness of 7 m. Depth of works increases from 40m in 2012 to 145 m by 2025, so overlying waste rock layers thickness growth up to 111 m by the time of quarry closing. Annual design capacity of coal production is about 2 mln. t / year.
Fig. 1 Profile of a Izykhsky coal mine development schedule The Mining Technology of a Thick Overburden L ayer Covering 77

3 Adjustment of the Maximum Output of Overburden by Direct Dumping Method

For deposit development combined opening scheme was chosen: 1-st bench develops with appliance of shovels and railway transportation of waste rock to the nearest carried the work to completion open pit at the distance of 3 km, were wastes are discharged into the open space of a quarry; several of the next benches (total amount depends on the increasing depth of works) works out by complex of hydraulic excavators and dumptrucks; the lowest and most thick (up to 27 m) layer of overburden, covering ore body, carries out by direct dumping method with appliance of draglines with different bucket capacity (11 and 20 m3), with rehandling ratio of 0,4. The main task is to determine the maximum height of the bench, which will be excavated by a dragline, taking into account that the volume of developed space, were overburden should be replaced is limmited by the width of stope which is assumed according to the system of deposit development. Based on draglines discharging parameters and stability conditions a profile of inside dump stope must be designed. This profile gives a square of dump, out of which the amount of discharged overburden can be calculated. Having the width and the square of overburden stope the maximum height of the bench can be found. As the annual design capacity of the coal production is also determined before designing of the flowsheet process, the necessary draglines park due to its yearly capacity should be counted: firstly a length of working front of a strip mine, which allows to gain coal production must be evaluated; then by using the square of overburden stope total amount of overburden, that is to be removed, to open the access to coal and ensure the performance, can be found. If this value exceeds the rating yearly capacity of one dragline, then several shovels should work out that bench [2]. When main parameters of working space, such as height of the bench, width of stope, stability angles and working parameters of determined draglines are specified the scheme with sequence of rehandling can be designed.
Fig. 2 The profile of blasted overburden stope and a final inside dump position after rehandling 7 8 S.I. Fomin and D.A. Vedrova Fig. 3 Dividing total bulk of blasted rock according to draglines capacities. Passes of draglines 1 and 2 with bucket capacity 11 m3, primary inside dump formation. Fig. 4 1st pass of dragline with bucket capacity 20 m3. Primary inside dump formation. Fig. 5 2nd pass of dragline with bucket capacity 20 m3 consisting of discharging from two different positions. Final view of the inside dump and total bulk of rehandling. The Mining Technology of a Thick Overburden L ayer Covering 79

Coal layers then are developed by complex of hydraulic excavators and dumptrucks: overburden of interstratified layers is taken away on a dumping landfill outside the quarry border.

The thickest interstratified layer (more than 7 m) is to be excavated by additional pass of a dragline from on-dump standing point.
Fig. 6 Coal excavating Fig. 7 Additional pass of a dragline from on-dump standing point

4 Conclusions
The appliance of the proposed scheme will provide: Adjustment of the maximum output of overburden by direct dumping method; fully usage of draglines working parameters (maximum digging depth and discharging heights, working radiuses) and taking into account safety work conditions according to dump stability; reducing the bulk of work on opening the deposit and duration of time period preceding the start of operational activities; reducing expenditures in rehandling works, due to the optimal formation of the inside dump by back feeling into void.