Underground Mine to Save $1 Million Per Year with TITAN Bulk Emulsion
Document type: Case Study
Categories: Case Study

The difficulties in controlling overbreak and overall fragmentation
of the Run-of-Mine (ROM) material caused the mine to use costly
packaged explosives and tight patterns with a large number of holes
on their development rounds. The mine also operates under stringent
environmental standards and struggles to maintain nitrate levels below
the regulatory limit in the water discharged by the operation.

PROJECT GOALS
DECREASING COSTS AND IMPROVING FRAGMENTATION
The site engaged Dyno Nobel to perform a bulk emulsion trial using TITAN
7000 Emulsion with a goal of decreasing drilling and blasting costs and drift
overbreak and underbreak while also improving performance on fragmentation.
Measurements included PSD data on muckpiles using pictures taking after
blasting and during the mucking process.

The results of the trial showed potential for better fragmentation while
maintaining existing drill pattern designs. The data also suggests that the mine
can increase pattern sizes by drilling fewer holes on the face and continue to Figure 1: TITAN 7000
generate organic drilling and blasting savings.

UNDERGROUND MINE TO AT A GLANCE
SAVE $1 MILLION PER YEAR $1 MILLION ANNUAL
WITH TITAN® 7000 BULK SAVINGS

EMULSION
 21.7% REDUCTION IN
PROJECT SUMMARY P80 SIZE
UNDERGROUND METALS MINE PROJECTED TO SAVE
MILLIONS USING TITAN 7000
DynoConsult conducted a trial using TITAN 7000 at an underground mine CHALLENGE
to reduce costs, resulting in a projected savings of $1 million per year. • Reduce costs and
 improve performance in
BACKGROUND development headings

SOLUTION
AN UNDERGROUND MINE LOOKS TO DECREASE COSTS
 • Change from ANFO and
A Montana underground platinum group metals (PGM) operation using packaged explosives to
a combination of pneumatically-loaded ANFO and packaged explosive
 TITAN 7000 Bulk Emulsion
products looked to decrease costs and improve performance in
development headings. The mine was struggling to maintain development OUTCOME
rates, partially due to excessive overbreak that caused higher amounts of
material to haul over progressively longer distances as the headings were • Potential to save $1 million per year
driven further from the main mining areas. • P80 size reduced from 11.5” to 9”

TECHNOLOGY APPLIED PRODUCTS/
 TECHNOLOGY &
TITAN 7000 EMULSION SERVICES USED
Historically, the mine blasted with pneumatically loaded ANFO and
packaged products, including nitroglycerin dynamite and packaged
emulsion.
 DYNOCONSULT
During the trial, the operation transitioned to using TITAN 7000 Bulk
Emulsion. TITAN 7000 is a series of high-performance, booster-
sensitive, repumpable bulk explosives specifically formulated for use in
underground operations. It offers high detonation velocity, shock energy,
and fragmentation to achieve full advance, as well as water resistance for TITAN 7000
reliable performance in wet conditions.
 Differential Energy

VALUE ADDED

$1 MILLION IN SAVINGS WITH FRAGMENTATION
OPTIMIZATION
The first phase of the trial began with no design changes to the historical drill patterns used for horizontal development at
the mine. The perimeter (back and rib) holes were loaded as usual, with lifter and stoping holes loaded with TITAN 7000
pre-sensitized with micro-balloons at 1.10 g/cc. This was done to prove that the workflow and intrinsic logistics required
for using a bulk emulsion was feasible at this operation and provide evidence of potential benefits for phase 2 of the trial.

Figure 2: Design collar locations (left image, dimensions in feet) and schematic of traditional loading practices at
 the mine (right image) showing ANFO and packaged explosives loaded in different hole types correlated to collar
 colours on the left image

Table 1: Baseline - traditional development drill and blast practices at the mine

Based on the results observed from phase 1 blasts, the decision was made to proceed to phase 2 of the trial. This phase
was conducted by eliminating the use of packaged products in the rounds, loading the perimeter holes with TITAN 7000
chemically-gassed with a density below 1.0 g/cc, and loading the remaining holes in the same manner as phase 1.

Table 2: Phase 2 final drilling and loading details. Phase 1 changes highlighted in green. Phase 2 changes highlighted in
blue.

Eliminating ANFO and packaged explosives and replacing them with bulk emulsion in the mine’s approximately 7,000
development blasts per year showed the potential to save over $1 million each year in blasting costs alone. Furthermore,
the results of the trial showed the possibility for enhanced fragmentation by making the change to emulsion. In the tests
conducted, the muckpile fragmentation using image analysis showed a consistent size reduction in all size fractions
present and a reduction of P80 from approximately 11.5 inches with ANFO to 9.0 inches with TITAN 7000 Bulk Emulsion.

Figure 3: Measured particle size
 distribution (PSD) for ANFO and
 emulsion blasts analyzed.

The improvement in fragmentation and reduced cost was achieved while maintaining good drift shape and showing half
barrels along the entire heading perimeter, which minimized overbreak and underbreak from blasting. The results also
indicated a potential improvement from the standard 51-hole patterns the operation was using to meet specifications to an
upgraded 47-hole pattern in the future. This would further reduce drilling and blasting costs if the mine chooses to pursue
it.

Other efficiency gains from using emulsion to load the entire round have been noted, such as simpler and faster magazine
inventory management, quicker preparation, and loading of the blasts. The use of emulsion may also help decrease the
levels of ammonium nitrate in the mine water.

Table 3: Estimated costs and potential savings associated with each scenario. Further potential
savings from Phase 3 derived from trial data, expected from drilling time and blasting cost savings
if a new 47-hole pattern is used for development blasting at the mine.

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