Guidelines For Open Pit Slope Design

Guidelines for Open Pit Slope Design is a comprehensive account of the open pit slope design process. Created as an outcome of the Large Open Pit (LOP) project, an international research and technology transfer project on rock slope stability in open pit mines, this book provides an up-to-date compendium of knowledge of the slope design processes that should be followed and the tools that are available to aid slope design practitioners. This book links innovative mining geomechanics research into the strength of closely jointed rock masses with the most recent advances in numerical modelling, creating more effective ways for predicting rock slope stability and reliability in open pit mines. It sets out the key elements of slope design, the required levels of effort and the acceptance criteria that are needed to satisfy best practice with respect to pit slope investigation, design, implementation and performance monitoring. Guidelines for Open Pit Slope Design comprises 14 chapters that directly follow the life of mine sequence from project commencement through to closure. It includes: information on gathering all of the field data that is required to create a 3D model of the geotechnical conditions at a mine site; how data is collated and used to design the walls of the open pit; how the design is implemented; up-to-date procedures for wall control and performance assessment, including limits blasting, scaling, slope support and slope monitoring; and how formal risk management procedures can be applied to each stage of the process. This book will assist in meeting stakeholder requirements for pit slopes that are stable, in regards to safety, ore recovery and financial return, for the required life of the mine.

Weak rocks encountered in open pit mines cover a wide variety of materials, with properties ranging between soil and rock. As such, they can provide a significant challenge for the slope designer. For these materials, the mass strength can be the primary control in the design of the pit slopes, although structures can also play an important role. Because of the typically weak nature of the materials, groundwater and surface water can also have a controlling influence on stability. Guidelines for Open Pit Slope Design in Weak Rocks is a companion to Guidelines for Open Pit Slope Design, which was published in 2009 and dealt primarily with strong rocks. Both books were commissioned under the Large Open Pit (LOP) project, which is sponsored by major mining companies. These books provide summaries of the current state of practice for the design, implementation and assessment of slopes in open pits, with a view to meeting the requirements of safety, as well as the recovery of anticipated ore reserves. This book, which follows the general cycle of the slope design process for open pits, contains 12 chapters. These chapters were compiled and written by industry experts and contain a large number of case histories. The initial chapters address field data collection, the critical aspects of determining the strength of weak rocks, the role of groundwater in weak rock slope stability and slope design considerations, which can differ somewhat from those applied to strong rock. The subsequent chapters address the principal weak rock types that are encountered in open pit mines, including cemented colluvial sediments, weak sedimentary mudstone rocks, soft coals and chalk, weak limestone, saprolite, soft iron ores and other leached rocks, and hydrothermally altered rocks. A final chapter deals with design implementation aspects, including mine planning, monitoring, surface water control and closure of weak rock slopes. As with the other books in this series, Guidelines for Open Pit Slope Design in Weak Rocks provides guidance to practitioners involved in the design and implementation of open pit slopes, particularly geotechnical engineers, mining engineers, geologists and other personnel working at operating mines.

Guidelines for Evaluating Water in Pit Slope Stability is a comprehensive account of the hydrogeological procedures that should be followed when performing open pit slope stability design studies. Created as an outcome of the Large Open Pit (LOP) project, an international research and technology transfer project on the stability of rock slopes in open pit mines, this book expands on the hydrogeological model chapter in the LOP project's previous book Guidelines for Open Pit Slope Design (Read & Stacey, 2009; CSIRO PUBLISHING). The book comprises six sections which outline the latest technology and best practice procedures for hydrogeological investigations. The sections cover: the framework used to assess the effect of water in slope stability; how water pressures are measured and tested in the field; how a conceptual hydrogeological model is prepared; how water pressures are modelled numerically; how slope depressurisation systems are implemented; and how the performance of a slope depressurisation program is monitored and reconciled with the design. Guidelines for Evaluating Water in Pit Slope Stability offers slope design practitioners a road map that will help them decide how to investigate and treat water pressures in pit slopes. It provides guidance and essential information for mining and civil engineers, geotechnical engineers, engineering geologists and hydrogeologists involved in the investigation, design and construction of stable rock slopes.

Guidelines for Mine Waste Dump and Stockpile Design is a comprehensive, practical guide to the investigation, design, operation and monitoring of mine waste dumps, dragline spoils and major stockpiles associated with large open pit mines. These facilities are some of the largest man-made structures on Earth, and while most have performed very well, there are cases where instabilities have occurred with severe consequences, including loss of life and extensive environmental and economic damage. Developed and written by industry experts with extensive knowledge and experience, this book is an initiative of the Large Open Pit (LOP) Project. It comprises 16 chapters that follow the life cycle of a mine waste dump, dragline spoil or stockpile from site selection to closure and reclamation. It describes the investigation and design process, introduces a comprehensive stability rating and hazard classification system, provides guidance on acceptability criteria, and sets out the key elements of stability and runout analysis. Chapters on site and material characterisation, surface water and groundwater characterisation and management, risk assessment, operations and monitoring, management of ARD, emerging technologies and closure are included. A chapter is also dedicated to the analysis and design of dragline spoils. Guidelines for Mine Waste Dump and Stockpile Design summarises the current state of practice and provides insight and guidance to mine operators, geotechnical engineers, mining engineers, hydrogeologists, geologists and other individuals that are responsible at the mine site level for ensuring the stability and performance of these structures. Readership includes mining engineers, geotechnical engineers, civil engineers, engineering geologists, hydrogeologists, environmental scientists, and other professionals involved in the site selection, investigation, design, permitting, construction, operation, monitoring, closure and reclamation of mine waste dumps and stockpiles.

Rock Slope Engineering covers the investigation, design, excavation and remediation of man-made rock cuts and natural slopes, primarily for civil engineering applications. It presents design information on structural geology, shear strength of rock and ground water, including weathered rock. Slope design methods are discussed for planar, wedge, circular and toppling failures, including seismic design and numerical analysis. Information is also provided on blasting, slope stabilization, movement monitoring and civil engineering applications. This fifth edition has been extensively up-dated, with new chapters on weathered rock, including shear strength in relation to weathering grades, and seismic design of rock slopes for pseudo-static stability and Newmark displacement. It now includes the use of remote sensing techniques such as LiDAR to monitor slope movement and collect structural geology data. The chapter on numerical analysis has been revised with emphasis on civil applications. The book is written for practitioners working in the fields of transportation, energy and industrial development, and undergraduate and graduate level courses in geological engineering.

Although most mining companies utilise systems for slope monitoring, experience indicates that mining operations continue to be surprised by the occurrence of adverse geotechnical events. A comprehensive and robust performance monitoring system is an essential component of slope management in an open pit mining operation. The development of such a system requires considerable expertise to ensure the monitoring system is effective and reliable. Written by instrumentation experts and geotechnical practitioners, Guidelines for Slope Performance Monitoring is an initiative of the Large Open Pit (LOP) Project and the fifth book in the Guidelines for Open Pit Slope Design series. Its 10 chapters present the process of establishing and operating a slope monitoring system; the fundamentals of pit slope monitoring instrumentation and methods; monitoring system operation; data acquisition, management and analysis; and utilising and communicating monitoring results. The implications of increased automation of mining operations are also discussed, including the future requirements of performance monitoring. Guidelines for Slope Performance Monitoring summarises leading mine industry practice in monitoring system design, implementation, system management, data management and reporting, and provides guidance for engineers, geologists, technicians and others responsible for geotechnical risk management.

Developments in Geographic Information Technology have raised the expectations of users. A static map is no longer enough; there is now demand for a dynamic representation. Time is of great importance when operating on real world geographical phenomena, especially when these are dynamic. Researchers in the field of Temporal Geographical Information Systems (TGIS) have been developing methods of incorporating time into geographical information systems. Spatio-temporal analysis embodies spatial modelling, spatio-temporal modelling and spatial reasoning and data mining. Advances in Spatio-Temporal Analysis contributes to the field of spatio-temporal analysis, presenting innovative ideas and examples that reflect current progress and achievements.

This book provides a comprehensive coverage of the theory and principle of the Hoek-Brown (HB) failure criterion, methods or guidelines for estimating the HB input parameters, and the methodology of application of the HB criterion in rock engineering projects. It aims to help researchers, engineers and research students who work in the area of rock mechanics and mining engineering. Academics can quickly obtain an overview of the state of the art of the theory and principle of the Hoek-Brown criterion by reading the book before they advance their researches on the topics related to rock failure criteria. Geotechnical engineers can select appropriate Hoek-Brown input parameters for the design and analysis of rock engineering projects with the help of the principles introduced in this book. Research students may use the book as a textbook to learn the principle of rock mechanics related to rock mass properties.