CONTINUOUS CUTTING
The first iteration of the MX650 was put through its paces during several test programs over the past few years at WOLFRAM ’ s Mittersill tungsten mine in Austria , which is owned by Sandvik Group . Haugen and several of her colleagues witnessed the latest testing of the first-generation prototype at Mittersill , with the mining company and fellow Sweden-based miner LKAB now part of a consortium , led by CMIC , looking at developing a second generation MX650 .
Arne Lewis , Vice President of Hard Rock Continuous Mining at Sandvik Mining and Rock Solutions , told IM last year that some of the ‘ lessons learnt ’ from testing MX650 1.0 being factored into the second generation MX650 are tied to the loading and bolting operations that are part of the mechanised process .
Asked why the company was backing this CMIC-led project , Haugen said : “ For me , I think undercutting is the most energy-efficient way of cutting the rock and achieving the square cross section with the flexibility required .
“ The fact that we believe in this cutting technology and there was a consortium open to help develop this machine made it an easy decision to invest and get this machine to an adequate technology readiness level .”
She added : “ We at Boliden want to be at the forefront and lead this technology development . We want to learn as much as we can – both about capabilities and shortcomings – and see how the machine will behave and how we could potentially operate it .”
Haugen says no specific projects have been identified where the MX650 could potentially be deployed , but the learnings from testing MX650 2.0 could allow Boliden to screen for suitable applications across its project portfolio .
Then there is the potential operation of such a machine to consider .
“ This is the big question we are discussing as we work on this ,” Haugen said . “ Many years ago , Boliden had its own in-house mine development team – like what LKAB had with Bergteamet – who had the skill set to carry out such excavations . We are now weighing up if we could set up an internal team to conduct such work , if we use a contractor , or if the OEM could come in to operate the machine .
“ This is something that will be very important for the success of any project involving these new technologies .”
Mobile Mine ( r ) of the future
When it comes to mining-specific mechanical rock excavation technology , there are few OEMs that can compete with Epiroc in the commitment stakes .
The Sweden-based company launched the Mobile Miner family back in 2017 under the auspices of Atlas Copco . Upon launch , it invested in the development of three units : the 22H , 40V and 55V .
In the years that have passed , this has been refined into a two-product family featuring the 22H and the 40V – both of which have been designed for specific mining methods and constraints .
These Mobile Miners , consist of two major parts : the rear “ power unit ” and the front “ miner ”.
The miner incorporates the cutterhead and everything needed to excavate ore ; the power unit contains all the motors , pumps , ground support and control systems . Each unit is roughly 10 m in length , with the two parts connected by an articulation joint to improve manoeuvrability for negotiation of tight corners as well as minimise vibration in the operator ’ s cab .
The largest Mobile Miner is the 40V , which is typically used in small-to-medium-sized tunnels and cut-and-fill mining requiring 4 m x 4 m advances .
The V indicates the cutter head is placed vertically – as opposed to the H of the 22H , placed horizontally – with the stated advance rate of the machine being 10-15 m / d depending on the rock type .
Reminiscent of a traditional TBM , the first 40V was scheduled to be deployed at Hecla Mining ’ s Lucky Friday mine in Idaho , USA , after extensive work by both Hecla and Epiroc to tailor the
SHAFT BORING ROADHEADER
SAFE AND FAST
The Shaft Boring Roadheader ( SBR ) was developed for the mechanized sinking of blind shafts in soft to medium-hard rock . Safe and fast full-bottom shaft sinking to depths of 1,600 meters . herrenknecht . com / en / sbr