Booklet - Practical Rock Engineering Practice for Shallow and Opencast Mines

Sep 20, 2026

Uploaded by Anda

Practical guidance for rock engineering in shallow underground excavations and open pit or quarry environments, focused on the complete workflow from rock mass characterization to stability evaluation and support design. The publication covers collection of geotechnical data, site investigations, borehole core logging, exposed surface mapping, in situ stress conditions, and rock mass classification. It then addresses stability assessment for underground excavations and pit slopes, followed by solid support, backfill, and installed support approaches. An appendix provides a risk assessment framework.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages73

Reading Time3 h 4 min

AccessFree to download

Contents

Chapter 1 Introduction

Chapter 2 Rock Mass Characterisation

Chapter 3 Stability

Chapter 4 Support

Acknowledgements

References

Appendix Rock Engineering Risk Assessment

Figures

Booklet Practical Rock Engineering Practice for Shallow and Opencast Mines T. R. Stacey School of Mining Engineering University of the Witwatersrand A. H. Swart SRK Consulting The Safety in Mines Research Advisory Committee (SIMRAC) October 2001 Published by The Safety In Mines Research Advisory Committee (SIMRAC) Braamfontein Centre, 23 Jorissen Street, Braamfontein 2001, South Africa This publication is copyright under the Berne Convention. In terms of the Copyright Act No. 98 of 1978, no part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval systems, without permission from SIMRAC. ISBN 1-919853-05-7 CONTENTS CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION .............................................................................. 1 CHAPTER 2 ROCK MASS CHARACTERISATION .......................................... 3 2.1 Collection of geotechnical data ....................................................................... 3 2. 1. 1 Site investigations .............................................................................................. 3 2.1.2 Geotechnical logging of borehole core .............................................................. 4 2.1.3 Mapping of exposed rock surfaces .................................................................... 4 2. 1.4 Laboratory rock testing ...................................................................................... 4 2.2 In situ stress conditions ................................................................................... 4 2.3 Rock mass classification .................................................................................. 6 CHAPTER 3 STABILITY ...................................................................................... 13 3.1 Evaluation of the stability of underground excavations ............................ 13 3.1.1 Evaluation of failure of intact rock material and rock mass ............................ 13 3.1.2 Evaluation of structural instability................................................................... 13 3.1.3 Evaluation of the stability of rock beams ........................................................ 14 3.1.4 Use of rock mass classification approaches for the evaluation of rock mass stability for specific classes of excavations .................................... 15 3.1.5 Improvement of stability by changes in geometry .......................................... 22 3.1.6 Surface subsidence and caving ........................................................................ 23 3.2 Evaluation of the stability of open pit and quarry slopes .......................... 25 3.2.1 Evaluation of the stability of slopes in soil and deeply weathered rock .................................................................................................................. 26 3.2.2 Evaluation of the stability of rock slopes in homogeneous rock mass domains ................................................................................................... 28 3.2.3 Evaluation of the stability of rock slopes in rock masses containing major structural features .................................................................................. 29 3.2.4 Influence of various factors on slope stability ................................................. 35 3.2.5 Slope management ........................................................................................... 36 CHAPTER 4 SUPPORT ......................................................................................... 37 4.1 Solid support .................................................................................................. 37 4. 1. 1 Design of solid pillars ...................................................................................... 37 4. 1.2 Special pillars.................

FAQs

What topics are covered in the rock mass characterization chapter?

It covers geotechnical data collection, including site investigations, geotechnical logging of borehole core, mapping of exposed rock surfaces, laboratory rock testing, in situ stress conditions, and rock mass classification.

How does the stability section address underground excavations?

It evaluates stability by considering intact rock and rock mass failure, structural instability, stability of rock beams, and using rock mass classification approaches for specific excavation classes, plus aspects like surface subsidence and caving.

What support methods are presented after the stability evaluation?

The support chapter covers solid support (including pillar and pillar foundation stability), backfill, and installed support for tunnels, drawpoints, shafts, orepasses, shallow tabular stopes, and support of open excavations.

Sep 20, 2026

Uploaded by Anda

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