Data exchange in distributed mining systems by OPC Unified Architecture, WLAN and TTE VLF technology

Mining operations rely on effective extraction policies, which base on concerted management and technical arrangements. In addition to commodities, mining of data is the increasingly matter of subject in mining engineering. The Horizon 2020 project – Real-Time-Mining supports the ongoing paradigm shift of pushing mining activities from discontinuous to continuous operation. In this respect, the partners TU Bergakademie Freiberg (TU BAF) and IBeWa Consulting tackle the issue of physical and logical data acquisition in underground mining. The first aspect of the project addresses the ‘logical’ provision of data. Mining technology is increasingly interacting among each other and integrated into globally distributed systems. At the same time, the integration of current mining devices and machineries into superordinated systems is still complex and costly. This means only a few number of mining operators is capable to integrate their operation technology into a Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) system. TU BAF presents the middleware OPC Unified Architecture, which is a platform independent middleware for data exchange and technology interconnection among distributed systems. By installing a SCADA demonstrator at the research and education mine Reiche Zeche, TU BAF intends to present the technical feasibility of a SCADA system basing on OPC UA even for SME mining operations. The second aspect of the project addresses the ‘physical’ provision of data via wireless transmission. The targeted use cases are mobile machineries and the surveillance of remote mine sites. Mobile machineries in underground mining are increasingly equipped with data management and autonomous operation systems. Correspondent data exchange to superordinated systems is mostly realized via Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN). A comprehensive WLAN signal coverage, however, is generally not maintained in under-ground mines due to lacking technical and economic feasibility. With the intention to in-crease the coverage/expense ratio at underground WLAN installations, TU BAF and IBe-Wa Consulting installed a WLAN test loop at Reiche Zeche mine basing on leaky feeder cables. Simultaneously, IBeWa Consulting pushes forward the surveilability of remote and/or hardly accessible mining sites by Through The Earth (TTE) data transmission. Current test performances present an enhanced stability for data transmission at ore / gneiss formations beyond 200m, primarily basing on a better alignment of the system to the isotropic characteristics of the bedrock

Simulation study of the velocity profile and deflection rate of non-Newtonian fluids in the bend part of the pipe

As resource extraction moves deeper underground, backfill mining has received a lot of attention from the industry as a very promising mining method that can provide a safe workplace for workers. However, the safe and efficient transport of fill slurry through pipelines still needs more exploration, especially in the bend section. In order to investigate the flow characteristics and velocity evolution of the slurry in the bend section of the pipe, a three-dimensional (3D) pipe model was developed using the computational fluid dynamics software Fluent, and nine sets of two-factor, three-level simulations were performed. Furthermore, a single-factor analysis was presented to investigate the effects of the two main influencing factors on the shifting of the maximum velocity of the slurry towards the distal side in the bend section, respectively. Then, the response surface analysis method was applied to the two-factor analysis of the maximum velocity shift and the weights of the two influencing factors were specified

Development of a Smart Computational Tool for the Evaluation of Co- and By-Products in Mining Projects using Chovdar Gold Ore Deposit in Azerbaijan as a Case Study

Despite their significance in numerous applications, many critical minerals and metals are still considered minor. Since most of them are not found alone in mineral deposits, their co- or by-production depends on the production of base metals and other major commodities. In many cases, the concentration of the minor metals is low enough not to be considered part of the production. Hence, their supply is not always secured, their availability decreases, and their criticality increases. Many researchers have addressed this issue, but no one has set actual impact factors other than economic ones that should determine the production of these minor commodities. This study identified several parameters, the number and diversity of which gave birth to developing a computational tool using a multi-criteria-decision analysis model based on the Analytical Hierarchical Process (AHP) and Python. This unprecedented methodology was applied to evaluate the production status of different commodities in a polymetallic deposit located in Chovdar, Azerbaijan. The evaluation outcomes indicated in quantifiable terms the production potentials for several commodities in the deposit and justified the great perspectives of this tool to evaluate all kinds of polymetallic deposits concerning the co- and by-production of several minor critical raw materials

Application of International Standards to Evaluate the Potential of Sustainable Secondary Production of Tin and Tungsten in Portugal

The ambitious movement towards industry 5.0 technologies and the green transition drives the efforts towards securing critical metals’ supply chains globally. In Europe, highly economically important Tin and Tungsten are raising concerns regarding supply security due to geographical reserves’ uniformity and socio-political reluctance to mining. Nevertheless, mines that have seized operations in Portugal due to not being sustainable in the past are attracting renewed attention for further exploitation due to growing market demand and reclamation efforts for environmental concerns. Such abandoned resources need to be reassessed for their feasibility from economic, social, and environmental perspectives to ensure sustainable exploitation. Presenting the production criticality of Tin and Tungsten, this study implements the United Nations Framework Classification for Resources (UNFC) to assess the viability of abandoned mines and tailings dumps in Portugal, considering the indicators of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The work indicates that Portugal’s abandoned Vale das Gatas Tin and Tungsten mine has good potential for further development. Furthermore, social perception towards new and abandoned mining is evaluated by collecting opinions from different parts of the country. It has been identified that sustainable technology and job opportunities are the driving parameters for the social acceptance of mining projects in Portugal

Data exchange in distributed mining systems by OPC Unified Architecture, WLAN and TTE VLF technology

Mining operations rely on effective extraction policies, which base on concerted management and technical arrangements. In addition to commodities, mining of data is the increasingly matter of subject in mining engineering. The Horizon 2020 project – Real-Time-Mining supports the ongoing paradigm shift of pushing mining activities from discontinuous to continuous operation. In this respect, the partners TU Bergakademie Freiberg (TU BAF) and IBeWa Consulting tackle the issue of physical and logical data acquisition in underground mining. The first aspect of the project addresses the ‘logical’ provision of data. Mining technology is increasingly interacting among each other and integrated into globally distributed systems. At the same time, the integration of current mining devices and machineries into superordinated systems is still complex and costly. This means only a few number of mining operators is capable to integrate their operation technology into a Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) system. TU BAF presents the middleware OPC Unified Architecture, which is a platform independent middleware for data exchange and technology interconnection among distributed systems. By installing a SCADA demonstrator at the research and education mine Reiche Zeche, TU BAF intends to present the technical feasibility of a SCADA system basing on OPC UA even for SME mining operations. The second aspect of the project addresses the ‘physical’ provision of data via wireless transmission. The targeted use cases are mobile machineries and the surveillance of remote mine sites. Mobile machineries in underground mining are increasingly equipped with data management and autonomous operation systems. Correspondent data exchange to superordinated systems is mostly realized via Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN). A comprehensive WLAN signal coverage, however, is generally not maintained in under-ground mines due to lacking technical and economic feasibility. With the intention to in-crease the coverage/expense ratio at underground WLAN installations, TU BAF and IBe-Wa Consulting installed a WLAN test loop at Reiche Zeche mine basing on leaky feeder cables. Simultaneously, IBeWa Consulting pushes forward the surveilability of remote and/or hardly accessible mining sites by Through The Earth (TTE) data transmission. Current test performances present an enhanced stability for data transmission at ore / gneiss formations beyond 200m, primarily basing on a better alignment of the system to the isotropic characteristics of the bedrock

Multi-criteria comparative analysis of the pressure drop on coal gangue fly-ash slurry at different parts along an L-shaped pipeline

Abstract Disposing of coal gangue and fly-ash on the surface is a risky method with tremendous potential catastrophic consequences for the environment. Backfill mining is a promising practice for turning those hazardous wastes into functional backfill materials. Unfortunately, how to efficiently deliver the slurry to the desired places remains under-researched. To address this issue, the computational fluid dynamics software Fluent was used in the current study in addition to a laboratory rheological test to simulate the impact of various parameters on the evolution of pressure at a particular section of the pipeline. Furthermore, the response surface method was employed to investigate how the various components and their corresponding influencing weights interact to affect the pressure drop. This study demonstrates that the pressure drop of the slurry is highly influenced by slurry concentration, speed, and pipe diameter. While conveying speed is the main component in the bend section, pipe diameter takes over in the horizontal and vertical pipe sections

Data exchange in distributed mining systems by OPC Unified Architecture, WLAN and TTE VLF technology

Mining operations rely on effective extraction policies, which base on concerted management and technical arrangements. In addition to commodities, mining of data is the increasingly matter of subject in mining engineering. The Horizon 2020 project – Real-Time-Mining supports the ongoing paradigm shift of pushing mining activities from discontinuous to continuous operation. In this respect, the partners TU Bergakademie Freiberg (TU BAF) and IBeWa Consulting tackle the issue of physical and logical data acquisition in underground mining. The first aspect of the project addresses the ‘logical’ provision of data. Mining technology is increasingly interacting among each other and integrated into globally distributed systems. At the same time, the integration of current mining devices and machineries into superordinated systems is still complex and costly. This means only a few number of mining operators is capable to integrate their operation technology into a Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) system. TU BAF presents the middleware OPC Unified Architecture, which is a platform independent middleware for data exchange and technology interconnection among distributed systems. By installing a SCADA demonstrator at the research and education mine Reiche Zeche, TU BAF intends to present the technical feasibility of a SCADA system basing on OPC UA even for SME mining operations. The second aspect of the project addresses the ‘physical’ provision of data via wireless transmission. The targeted use cases are mobile machineries and the surveillance of remote mine sites. Mobile machineries in underground mining are increasingly equipped with data management and autonomous operation systems. Correspondent data exchange to superordinated systems is mostly realized via Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN). A comprehensive WLAN signal coverage, however, is generally not maintained in under-ground mines due to lacking technical and economic feasibility. With the intention to in-crease the coverage/expense ratio at underground WLAN installations, TU BAF and IBe-Wa Consulting installed a WLAN test loop at Reiche Zeche mine basing on leaky feeder cables. Simultaneously, IBeWa Consulting pushes forward the surveilability of remote and/or hardly accessible mining sites by Through The Earth (TTE) data transmission. Current test performances present an enhanced stability for data transmission at ore / gneiss formations beyond 200m, primarily basing on a better alignment of the system to the isotropic characteristics of the bedrock