Rib pillar design in open stope mining
CIM Bulletin, Vol. 82, No. 927, 1989
Y. Potvin, M. Hudyma and H.D.S. Miller, The University of British Columbia
This paper introduces a new approach for the design of rib pillars. The approach involves an empirical method for pillar design and a discussion of the pillar stability used for open stope mining methods.
The empirical method predicts the degree of stability of rib pillars. Pillar load is estimated using two and three dimensional numerical modelling. Rock strength and the shape effect of pillars are used to account for pillar strength. The method has been calibrated with case histories from Canadian open stope metal mines and is compared with other methods used for pillar design.
Keywords:
Rock mechanics, Pillar design, Open stope mining
