Assessing the explosion effect on rock mass pre-destruction
Authors:   Pacific National University, Shishkin Evgenii A , Smoliakov Aleksandr A ,   Pacific National University
Published: February 2022

Introduction. Theoretical and empirical research into rock blasting proved that detonation wave propagation results in the development of destruction and pre-destruction zones around the explosive cavity. In the destruction zone, rock crushes. In the pre-destruction zone, stresses set up by the detonation wave are concentrated on rock mass structure defects, giving rise to new micro defects and the development of the existing ones. Rock fracturing and cavitation increase, lowering its strength properties; this is called rock pre-destruction. There are works devoted to the qualitative analysis of rock in the pre-destruction zone, but the problem requires elaboration to offer possibilities for practical application. Research aims to quantify rock mass pre-destruction to use the parameters of rock blasting by borehole charges under opencast mining in engineering calculations. Methods of research. To assess the degree of rock mass pre-destruction at a distance from the charge axis, a pre-destruction intensity coefficient is used. The destruction zone radius is determined by a well-known method. In the destruction zone, the value of the pre-destruction intensity coefficient is higher than one, i. e. there is discontinuity of the rock mass. Beyond the destruction zone, there is a pre-destruction zone where the value of the pre-destruction intensity coefficient is less than one. The pre-destruction zone boundary is at distances of the order of 200–250 charge radii. The pre-destruction intensity coefficient of a particular zone attained after all charges have been fired is determined by summing the pre-destruction intensity coefficient from every charge. According to the energy approach, rock strength can be assessed by the value of the specific drilling energy intensity. In order to determine the reduction value of the specific drilling energy intensity in a particular zone, it is essential to know the drilling specific energy capacity of this zone in the natural state, the pre-destruction intensity coefficient attained after a large-scale blast of borehole charges, and specific drilling energy intensity of completely disintegrated rock. The effect made by another borehole charge explosion on the rock mass is weaker due to its pre-destruction by previous blasts. So we propose the impact multiplicity coefficient that reflects the accumulation of pre-destruction in a particular zone under the sequence blasting of borehole charges. Results. The expected value of the specific drilling energy intensity has been calculated for the individual arbitrarily spaced wells within the pre-destruction zone of a particular rock mass zone. The calculation results were compared with the practical values measured during blasting preparation in the preset rock mass zone. Conclusions. The findings of this study have made it possible to quantify the impact of explosions on rock mass pre-destruction. The developed technique makes it possible to predict the value of drilling energy intensity in the pre-destruction zone and, as a result, establish the required specific energy intensity of detonation and hence the consumption of explosives. Thus, it becomes possible to reduce the consumption of explosives under the existing blasting scheme at the enterprise and model other charge initiation types to select the least expensive one.