EXPLOSIVES & BLASTING generating automated loading rules for blast charging , according to the company . This process has been supported using Orica ’ s smart explosives delivery systems ( MMU™ – Mobile Manufacturing Units ), capable of retrieving automated loading rules from the cloud and facilitating accurate explosives charging in line with the loading rules generated by the algorithm ; all with “ minimal interaction by the MMU operator ”, Orica said .
Execution of these designs is , again , captured in the cloud , accompanied by excavation productivity from the resulting blast , providing a closed loop system to feed the machine-learning algorithms .
“ Today , Roy Hill have successfully deployed Design for Outcome across their mining operations to improve mining profit by removing overcharging and redeploying energy to areas that were previously under blasted ,” Orica said .
The two firms are now working to expand Design for Outcome to increase mining productivity , optimise ore fragmentation and boost performance in the site ’ s crushing and processing circuits .
All this mining knowledge and more is being introduced to the Integrated Extraction Simulator ( IES ), a cloud-based software platform that , Orica says , simulates and optimises every step in the mining value chain , from blasting through to final product .
Orica ’ s new WebGen 200 suite of fully wireless initiating systems set to release in late 2021
Having , in late-2020 , been named the commercialisation partner for IES , developed by the Cooperative Research Centre for Optimising Resource Extraction , Orica recently signed a software licence agreement with JKTech Pty Ltd that gives it access to models developed by the Julius Kruttschnitt Mineral Research Centre used in IES ’ comminution and flotation simulation .
“ IES represents a generational advance in the technology of mining and mineral processing simulation ,” Orica said . “ The system is the first simulator with the capability to model multiple ore and mineral types simultaneously , the first to incorporate blasting into the mineral processing flowsheet and the first to leverage cloud computing to access hundreds or even thousands of servers if they are required to solve complex non-linear optimisations .”
Developed from the ground up as a multi-user system , any number of domain experts can collaborate simultaneously within IES to configure and run a flowsheet that represents the realworld mining and mineral processing value chain , according to Orica . One notable area where IES is making a difference to mining operations is its ability to underpin the implementation of mine to mill initiatives , Mathiravedu said .
“ Blast designs are optimised based on the geotechnical and geometallurgical characteristics of the blast to produce the maximum throughput and metal recovery without exceeding the functional capacity of the plant ,” he said . “ IES is also making headway in the life-of-asset scenario planning space and provides the ability to simulate each block of an entire block model across multiple mining or flowsheet scenarios to select the best strategies for maximising net present value for the life of mine .”
Orica sees much of this simulation capability showcasing the benefits of its new explosives and blasting technology .
In the wireless initiation space , Orica is building on thousands of hours of operational experience with its WebGen™ 100 underground