GATE MINING SOLUTION 2020

Section: GENERAL APTITUDE

1. The distance between Delhi and Agra is 233 km. A car P started travelling from Delhi to Agra
and another car Q started from Agra to Delhi along the same road 1 hour after the car P
started. The two cars crossed each other 75 minutes after the car Q started. Both cars were
travelling at constant speed. The speed of car P was 10 km/hr more than the speed of car Q.
How many kilometres the car Q had travelling when the cars crossed each other?

a. 66.6 b. 88.2 c. 116.5 d. 75.2

Ans. d
2. The profit shares of two companies P and Q are shown in the figure. If the two companies
have invested a fixed and equal amount every year, then the ratio of the total revenue of
company P to the total revenue of company q, during 2013 – 2018 is ________.

a. 15: 17 b. 16: 17 c. 17 : 16 d. 17: 15

Ans. b
3. The difference between the sum of the first 2n natural numbers and the sum of the first n odd
natural numbers is _________.
a. n2 + n b. 2n2 – n c. n2 – n d. 2n2 + n
Ans. a
4. Despite a string of poor performances, the chances of K.L. Rahul’s selection in the team are
_______.
a. bright b. uncertain c. obvious d. slim
Ans. a
 GATE MINING SOLUTION 2020

5. P, Q, R, S, T, U, V, and W are seated around a circular table.

I. S is seated opposite to W.
II. U is seated at the second place to the right of R.
III. T is seated at the third place to the left of R.
IV. V is a neighbour of S.
Which of the following must be true?
a. Q is a neighbour of R b. P is not seated opposite to Q.
c. P is a neighbour of R d. R is the left neighbour of S.
Ans. b
6. For a matrix M = [mij]; i, j = 1, 2, 3, 4, the diagonal elements are all zero and mij = -mij. The
minimum number of elements required to fully specify the matrix is _________.

a. 0 b. 12 c. 16 d. 6

Ans. d
7. Rajiv Gandhi KhelRatna Award was conferred __________ Mary Kom, a six-time world
champion in boxing, recently in a ceremony ________ the RashtrapatiBhawan (the
President’s official residence) in New Delhi.

a. to, at b. on, in c. on, at d. with, at

Ans. c
8. Select the word that fits the analogy:

Cover: Uncover :: Associate: _________

a. Misassociate b. Unassociate c. Inassociate d. Dissociate

Ans. d
9. Hit by floods, the kharif (summer sown) crops in various parts of the country have been
affected. Officials believe that the loss in production of the kharif crops can be recovered in
the output of the rabi (winter sown) crops so that the country can achieve its food-grain
production target of 291 million tons in the crop year 2019 – 20 (July – June). They are
hopeful that good rains in July-August will help the soil retain moisture for a longer period,
helping winter sown crops such as wheat and pulses during the November-February period.

Which of the following statements can be inferred from the given passage?

a. Officials hope that the food-grain production target will be met due to a good rabi
produce.
b. Officials feel that the food-grain production target cannot be met due to floods.
 GATE MINING SOLUTION 2020

c. Officials declared that the food-grain production target will be met due to good rains.
d. Officials want the food-grain production target to be met by the November-February
period.
Ans. a

10. Repo rate is the rate at which Reserve Bank of India (RBI) lends commercial banks, and
reverse repo rate is the rate at which RBI borrows money from commercial banks.
Which of the following statements can be inferred from the above passage?
a. Increase in repo rate will decrease cost of borrowing and decrease lending by
commercial banks.
b. Decrease in repo rate will increase cost of borrowing and decrease lending by
commercial banks
c. Increase in repo rate will decrease cost of borrowing and increase lending by
commercial banks.
d. Decrease in repo rate will decrease cost of borrowing and increase lending by
commercial banks.
Ans. c

Section: Mining

1. Match the following metals with their corresponding minerals.

Metal Mineral
P Copper 1 Galena
Q Tungsten 2 Sphalerite
R Lead 3 Chalcopyrite
S Zinc 4 wolframite

a. P – 4, Q – 1, R – 3, S – 2 b. P – 2, Q – 3, R – 4, S – 1
c. P – 3, Q – 4, R – 1, S – 2 d. P – 4, Q – 2, R – 1, S – 3

Ans. c

2. A cylindrical sample of granular mate4rial has the following measurements:

Length: 10 cm
Diameter: 5 cm
Weight: 350 g
Assume the sample is completely dry with specific gravity of solid grains 2.8. The void ratio
of the sample is _________ (round off to 3 decimal places).
 GATE MINING SOLUTION 2020

Ans. 0.568

Sol: G= ⇒ 𝑃 = 𝐺 × 𝑃 = 2.8 × 1000 = 2800 𝑘𝑔/𝑚

mS =350/1000 = 0.35 kg
.
VS = ∵𝑃 =

= 1.25 × 10-4
V = × 0. 05 × 0.1 = 1.96 × 10

VV = 0.71 × 10-4
.
e= = .
= 0.568

3. For x in the range of [- 3, 3], the maximum value for the function
f(x) = x3 – 6x2 + 9x + 15 is _____________ (round off to 1 decimal place).
Ans. 19
Sol: f’(x) = 0
3x2 – 12x + 9 = 0
x2 – 4x + 3 = 0
x – 3x – x + 3 = 0
x(x – 3) – 1 (x – 3) = 0
x = 3, 1
f”(x) = 6x – 12
f”(1) = - 6 > 0
∴ x = 1 maxima
Maximum value f(1) =1 – 6 + 9 + 15 = 19

4. Match the following sampling patterns with the corresponding sampling types.

Sampling Pattern Sampling Type

 GATE MINING SOLUTION 2020

P 1 Regular
Q 2 Based
R 3 Stratified random
S 4 Random

a. P – 4, Q – 2, R – 1, S – 3 b. P – 1, Q – 2, R – 3, S – 4
c. P – 1, Q – 3, R – 4, S – 2 d. P – 1, Q – 3, R – 2, S – 4
Ans. c

5. The dry and wet bulb temperatures at the inlet of the airstream are 30°C and 25°C,
respectively. The corresponding values at the outlet of the airstream are 26°C and 25°C,
respectively. The psychrometric process that occurs in the airstream is described as
a. condensation b. sensible cooling c. evaporative cooling d. latent cooling
Ans. c
Sol: TD = 26°c
TD = 30°c
Tw= 25°c Tw= 25°c

As wet bulb temperature remain constant with decrease in dry bulb temperature. It’s a
case of evaporative cooling.

6. The cost of a slurry pump is Rs. 50,000 and it has an estimated life of 7 years. If the salvage
value is Rs. 8000, the annual depreciation following straight-line depreciation method, in
Rupees, is _________ (round off to 1 decimal place).
Ans. 6000
Sol: Cost of Slurry pump = 50000 Rs
Salvage value = 8000 Rs
Total depreciable value = Rs. 42000

Annual depreciation (Rs) = = 6000𝑅𝑠.

7. In the context of gas testing using flame safety lamp, the correct statement is
a. Each accumulation test has to be necessarily followed by percentage test
b. Accumulation test is always done after percentage test
 GATE MINING SOLUTION 2020

c. Percentage test is done only in the event of accumulation test giving negative result
d. either percentage test or accumulation test can be done first
Ans. c
Sol: Accumulation test gives spiring or jumping of flame gives positive response, indicating
an accumulation of gas not less than 3%.
So it’s not wise to go for percentage test afterwards.
In case of negative accumulation test response, Percentage test carried out to estimate
conc. of gas more or less accurately.

8. The following consecutive readings were taken at uniform intervals with a level and a
levelling staff on continuously sloping ground.

0.405, 1.035, 1.654, 0.240, 0.615, 1.125, 0.800, 1.125

The number of change point is ________.

Ans. 2
Sol: Change point is point where both BS & Fs are taken to establish new instrument height
after shifting of instrument.

0.405 1.035 1.654 1.125

0.240 0.615 1.125
0.800

(CP- 1) (CP- 2)
9. Post-pillar method of stoping is a variant of

a. cut and fill stoping b. vertical crater retreat method

c. sublevel stoping d. sublevel caving

Ans. a

Sol: It is a variant of cut & fill method of mining.

10. A random sample has five observation as shown below.

11 14 15 13 12

The coefficient of variation of the sample is _______ (round off to 3 decimal places).
Ans. 0.1216
 GATE MINING SOLUTION 2020

Formula: 𝜎= ∑ (𝑥 − 𝑥̅ )
Sol: Mean = (11 + 14 + 15 + 13 + 12)/5 = 65/5
Mean = 13
Standard Deviation σ

= × (11 − 13) + (14 − 13) + (15 − 13) + (13 − 13) + (12 − 13)

= × ((−2) + (1) + (2) + (0) + (−1) )

= (0.25) × ((4) + (1) + (4) + (0) + (1))

= (0.25) × (10) = (2.5) = 1.5811
.
Coefficient of variance (variation) = = = 0.1216

11. The code for the lowest category of mineral resources under United Nations Framework
Classification (UNFC) system is

a. 444 b. 123 c. 334 d. 111

Ans. c
Sol: As per UNFC system 111 highest category
334 lowest category

12. The plane stress condition is given by

a. εzz ≠ 0, γyz ≠ 0, γzx ≠ 0 b. σzz ≠ 0, τyz ≠ 0, τzx ≠ 0

c. σzz = 0, τyz = 0, τzx = 0 d. εzz = 0, γyz = 0, γzx = 0

Ans. c
13. Match the wire rope types with their
corresponding cross-sectional diagrams.
 GATE MINING SOLUTION 2020

a. P – 1, Q – 3, R – 4, S – 2 b. P – 3, Q – 2, R – 4, S – 1
c. P – 3, Q – 2, R – 4, S – 1 d. P – 4, Q – 2, R – 3, S – 1
Ans. B

14. A rock sample has coefficient of thermal diffusivity 1.282 × 10-6 m2/s, specific heat 900
J/(kg°C) and density 2600 kg/m3. The coefficient of thermal conductivity of the rock sample
in W/(m° C) is ______________.(round off to 1 decimal place).
Ans. 2.999

Sol: Thermal diffusivity = = 𝑘 => 1.282 × 10 × 900 × 2600 = 2.999

15. The fore bearings and back bearings of the lines of an open compass traverse are given
below.

Line Fore bearing Back bearing

PQ 132°30’ 313°30’
QR 123°30’ 303°30’
RS 182°30’ 2°15’

ST 288°45’ 108°0’

The stations that are free from local attraction are

a. S and T b. P and Q c. R and S d. Q and R
Ans. D
Sol: Condition of stations free from local attraction
BB – FB = 180°
QR Satisfies = 303°30’ - 123°30’ = 108°0’

1 4
16. The eigen values of the matrix A = are
3 2

a. – 2, 5 b. 6, 4 c. 4, 5 d. – 4, 5

Ans. a
17. In a mine bench, the shovel loading time follows exponential distribution with a mean
loading time of 5 min per dumper. The arrival rate of dumpers that are identical in capacity,
follows Poisson distribution with a mean arrival rate of 8 per hour. The probability that the
shovel remains idle is _________(round off to 2 decimal places).
Ans. 0.333
 GATE MINING SOLUTION 2020

Sol: Arrival rate = (𝜆) = = 𝑚𝑖𝑛

Service rate = (μ) = 1/5 min

𝜌= = × = (Shovel is busy)

Probability of Shovel remain idle = 1 − = = 0.333

18. Match the following safety arrangements for a surface-to-underground shaft hoist with their
corresponding safety functions.

Hoisting safety arrangement Safety function

P Detaching hook 1 Over-winding safety on surface

Q Narrowing rigid guides 2 Resting cages

R Keps 3 Over-winding safety at underground

a. P – 2, Q – 3, R – 1 b. P – 1, Q – 3, R – 2

c. P – 3, Q – 1, R – 2 d. P – 1, Q – 2, R – 3

Ans. b

19. Rock strata has unit weight of 25 kN/m3 and Poisson’s ratio 1/3. At a depth of 200m, the
horizontal stress in MPa is __________ (round off to 1 decimal place).

Ans. 2.5

Sol: = => 𝜎 = × 25 × 10 × 200

= ×
× 25 × 10 × 200 = 25 × 10 𝑃𝑎 = 2.5𝑀𝑃𝑎

20. For a mixture of inflammable gases, the lower and upper explosibility limits can be
computed using

a. Boyle’s law b. Graham’s law c. Dalton’s law d. Le Chatelier relation

Ans. d
 GATE MINING SOLUTION 2020

21. A shovel of bucket capacity 4.2 m3 makes 900 passes per day with a fill factor of 0.8. If the
swell factor of the rock is 1.4, then in-situ volume handled by the shovel in a month of 24
working days in m3 is ___________ (round off to 1 decimal place).

Ans. 51840
Sol: Capacity of shovel per day = 4.2 × 900 × 0.8 × 1/1.4
(In-situ) =2160 m3/day
Capacity per 24 days = 51840 m3/24 days

22. The ‘ratchet and pawl’ mechanism in a jack hammer drill

a. prevents reverse rotation of rifle bar
b. forces down the piston
c. engages rifle bar with rifle nut
d. provides a twisting force to the drill steel
Ans. a
23. ‘Cross-measure borehole method’ is used for
a. methane drainage b. rock slope monitoring
c. connecting two drifts d. subsidence monitoring
Ans. a

24. A random variable X has the following probability mass function.

x 3 6 8 12

f(x) 1/2 1/4 1/8 1/8

The expected value of the variable C is ____________ (round off to 1 decimal place).

Ans. 5.5

Sol: E(x) = ∑ 𝑥𝑓(𝑥)

= 3 × + 6 × + 8 × + 12 ×

= 1.5 + 1.5 + 1 + 1.5 = 5.5

 GATE MINING SOLUTION 2020

25. For the electric delay detonator shown in the figure, the
components P, Q and R respectively, are
a. priming charge, delay element, fuse head

b. delay element, fuse head, priming charge

c. fuse head, priming charge, delay element

d. fuse head, delay element, priming charge

Ans. d

26. For a development heading, the blasting parameters are

Cross-section: 6.0m × 5.0 m
Total number of holes: 72
Number of trimmer holes: 30
Depth of each hole: 3.5 m
Charge per hole (except trimmers): 3.5 kg
Charge per trimmer hole: 1.8 kg
Pull per round: 90% of hole depth
The powder factor for the development round in m3/kg is __________ (round off to 2
decimal places).
Ans. 0.47 m3/kg
× × . × .
Sol: Powder factor (m3/kg) = ( × . ) ( × . )
= = 0.47015 m3/kg

27. An explosive mixture has 80 g of ammonium nitrate (NH4NO3) and 14 g of fuel oil (C10H20).
The oxygen balance in the mixture is

a. deficient by 24 g b. surplus by 16g c. surplus by 32 g d. deficient by 32 g

Ans. Marks to All

Sol: For oxygen Balance of NH4NO3
Mol. weight = 80
O2 balance = (3 – 0.5 × 4 -2 ×0) = 1 atom of O2
80 gm NH4 NO3 gives = 16 gm of oxygen
For fuel oil (C10H20)
 GATE MINING SOLUTION 2020

O2 balance = (d – 0.5 b - 2a)O2

= 0 – 0.5 × 20 – 2 × 10
= -10 atm of O2
= 160 gm O2 required
Here d = no of oxygen atoms, b= no if hydrogen atoms, a= no of carbon atoms
Fuel require 160 gm of O2
O2 deficient by 160-16 =144 gm .
NB: if fuel oil is CH2 then O2 deficiency = 48-16 = 32 g (as per options)
28. In the figure shown below, the friction coefficient between the block and the inclined plane is
0.2 and all the pulleys are weightless. The weight of the block is 10N. The minimum force P
in Newtons that is needed to slide the block up the inclined plane is _____________(round
off to 2 decimal places).

Ans. 67.87 N
RN
Sol: F
T
T
10 sin45

T T
10cos45
45° 10N

2T 2T

∑V = 0 ⇒ RN = 10 cos45 = 4T
√ 4T

P
 GATE MINING SOLUTION 2020

∑H =0 ⇒ T = 10 sin 45 + μRN = + .2 × = 1.2 × =

√ √ √ √

= 6√2𝑁
∴ P = 8T = 8 × 6√2 = 48√2𝑁 = 67.87𝑁

29. A sealed-off area air sample consists of 16.0% O2, 3.0% CO2, and the rest is N2. Assume that
the standard composition of atmospheric air is 21.0% O2 and 79.0% N2. The percentage of
blackdamp in the air sample is __________ (round off to 2 decimal places).

Ans. 23.8
Sol: 21% O2 → 79 N2

16% O2 → × 16 = 60.2

N2 excess = 81 – 60.2 = 20.8%

CO2 = 3.0 %
Blackdamp = N2 excess + CO2 =23.8 %

30.A cylindrical sample of cross-sectional area A, length L, and Young’s Modulus E, is subjected
to a constant uniaxial load P. Within the elastic limit of loading, the total strain energy stored
is
𝟐𝑷𝟐 𝑳
a. 𝑨𝑬
b. PL/A2E c. P2L/AE d. P2L/2AE
Ans. d

31. The equation for peak particle velocity (PPV) from blast induced ground vibration is given by

PPV = 𝑘 , where k and B are site constants.

In a field study, the following readings are recorded.

Sensor No. PPV in mm/s Sensor distance from blast Charge per delay
site (D) in m (Q) in kg
1 5.5 200 100
2 3.4 300 100

The value of B is _____________ (round off to 3 decimal places)

Ans. – 1.2
 GATE MINING SOLUTION 2020

Sol: PPV = 𝑘

5.5 = 𝑘 => 5.5 = 𝑘 = 𝑘 20

√

3.4 = 𝑘 => 3.4 = 𝑘 30

√

.
= => 1.62 = (0.67) => 0.209 = 𝐵 𝑙𝑜𝑔(0.67) = 𝐵 × −0.174
.

=>B = -1.2

32. A conveyor belt consumes 60 kW power while running at a speed of 3.0 m/s. The angle of
lap is 180° and the coefficient of friction between belt and pulley is 0.2. The maximum
tension (kN) in the belt is

a. 61.7 b. 82.9 c. 42.9 d. 21.7

Ans. b

Sol:

180°

TE × V = 60 kw

=> TE = 60/3 = 20 kN

. × °×
=𝑒 => 𝑇 𝑀𝑎𝑥 = 𝑒 ° × 𝑇 = 𝑒( . × )
× 𝑇 = 1.87𝑇

TE = 20 kN

=> T1 Max – T2 = 20 kN

=> T2 0.87= 20kN => T2 = 22.99 kN

=> T1 max = 22.99 × 1.87 = 42.99 kN

33. A tacheometer was setup at station P and the following readings were taken at two stations
A and B with the staff held vertical and the line of sight horizontal.
 GATE MINING SOLUTION 2020

Line Bearing Staff intercept

PA 210° 1.2m

PB 135° 1.4m

The additive and multiplying constants of the tacheometer are 0 and 100, respectively. The length of
AB in m is ____________ (round off to 1 decimal place).

Ans. 159.071m
210°
P
135°
Sol: ∠𝐴𝑃𝐵 = 210° − 135° = 75°

PA = KS + C = 100 × 1.2 + 0 = 120 m 210°-135°

A B
PB = KS + C = 100 × 1.4 + 0 = 140 m
P
120 m 140m

75°
A B

By cosine Rule
( ) ( )
Cos75° = × ×

⇒ 𝑥 = √25303.68 = 159.071𝑚

34.A bauxite ore body has four boreholes as shown below.

For each borehole, the grade of alumina, the thickness of
the ore body, and the triangular area of influence are as
shown.

The average grade of ore body in the region

ABCD in percentage is _____________ (round off to 1
decimal place).
 GATE MINING SOLUTION 2020

Ans. 31.2%

Sol:

grade(g%) thickness(t) Area of influence(A) (tA) (tA.g)

1
30% 10m × 200 × 200 200000 60000
2
1
35% 12m × 100 × 200 120000 42000
2
1
32% 8m × 100 × 100 40000 12800
2
1
25% 8m × 100 × 100 40000 10000
2
∑tA = ∑tA.g =
400000 124800

∑
g= ∑
× 100 = × 100 = 31.2%

35. The function values at four points of x are shown in the table. The area under the function,
using trapezoidal method, is ______________ (round off to 1 decimal place).

x 2 4 8 9
f(x) 8 12 9 10
Ans. 60

Sol: ∫ 𝑦𝑑𝑥 = [(1𝑠𝑡 + 𝑙𝑎𝑠𝑡) + 2(𝑅𝑒𝑚𝑎𝑖𝑛𝑖𝑛𝑔)]

= [(8 + 10) + 2(12 + 9)] = 60

36. An air receiver of a compressor, having volume 0.5 m3, supplies air for charging ANFO in
drill holes. During the charging process the absolute pressure of the air receiver falls from 900
kPa to 700 kPa. Assuming the entire process is isothermal, the volume of air supplied by the
receiver at 100 kPa ambient pressure, in m3 is
a. 4.48 b. 1.00 c. 0.39 d. 0.64

Ans. b
Sol: Isothermal process, assume initial volume as x
P1V1 = P2 V2
⇒ (0.5-x)× 900 = 700 × 0.5
 GATE MINING SOLUTION 2020

⇒ x = 0.111
Now, 900× 0.111 = 100 × v
⇒ v = 0.999 = 1 m3
37. The following figure represents the observations from the level survey of an underground
gallery.

If the reduced level of station A is 100.0 m, the reduced level of station D in m is

___________ (round off to 1 decimal place)

Ans. 100.5m

Sol: RLA = 100

𝐻𝐼 = 102

TLC =102 + 1.2 = 103.2 m

𝐻𝐼 = 101.8𝑚

RLD = 101.8 – 1.3 =100.5m

38. A mine gallery is supported by regularly placed roof bolts of 100 kN allowable pull force per
bolt, as shown below. Assuming unit weight of the immediate roof is 25 kN/m3, the factor
safety of the support system is ___________ (round off to 2 decimal places).
 GATE MINING SOLUTION 2020

Ans. 2.29

Sol:

FOS = = 2.29
× × . × /

39. The selling price of one rock bolt (in Rs.) is given as, S = (200 – 10n-0.5), where n is the
number of bolts produced. The manufacturing cost of rock bolts has a fixed component of Rs.
15000, and a variable component of Rs. 100 per bolt. The minimum break-even production,
in number of rock bolts, is _____________ (round off to 1 decimal place).

Ans. 0.0025
Sol: For Break even production
cost of production = Selling Cast
⇒ 15000 + 𝑛100 = (200 – 10n-0.5) ×n
.
⇒ 15000 + 𝑛100 = 200𝑛 − 10𝑛
.
⇒ 15000 = 100𝑛 − 10𝑛
⇒ dn = 100 + 5n-1.5 = 0
⇒ 100 = 5n-0.5
⇒ n-0.5 = 20
⇒ n0.5 = 1/20

⇒n= = 0.0025

40. A steel cube of side 50 mm is subjected to a uniform pressure of 200 MPa acting on
each face. The Young’s modulus and Poisson’s ratio of the material are 200 GPa and
0.25, respectively. The decrease in the side of the cube in mm is __________ (round
off to 3 decimal places).

Ans. 0.0025
Sol: μ = 0.25

ϵ = 200 × 109 Pa
( ) ( )
ϵx = − −

∆
= +

∆ ×
×
= (2𝜇 − 1) ×
 GATE MINING SOLUTION 2020

∆L = - 2.5 × 10-5 m

∆L = - 0.025 mm

= 0.025 mm

41. A vertical stoping block of length 60.0 m, height 40.0m, and average width 1.5 m has sharp
boundary walls. However, the mining width of the stoping block is 2.0 m. The tonnage
factors are3.0 tonne/m3 for ore and 2.5 tonne/m3 for wall rocks. The average grade of ore is
10.0%. The overall grade of ore mined on account of dilution in percentage is
_________(round off to 2 decimal places).

Ans. 7.83 %

Sol: Amt of ore = 60 × 40 × 1.5 × 3 =10800 tn

grade = 1080 tn
Amt. of waste = 60 × 40 × (2 – 1.5) × 2.5 = 3000 tn

Avg grade = × 100 = 7.83%

42. A linear programming problem is stated below.

Maximize Z = 3x1 + 5x2

Subject to, 2x1 + x2≤ 8

6x1 + 8x2≤ 30

x1, x2≥ 0

The objective function has

a. unbounded solution b. unique solution

c. infinite number of solutions d. infeasible solution

Ans. b

Sol: 2x1 + x2 = 8 ---------------(1)

x1 = 0, x2 = 8, x2 = 0, x1 = 4
6x1 + 8x2 = 30 ---------(2)
x1 = 0, x2 = 3.75, x2 = 0, x1 = 5
unique solution
 GATE MINING SOLUTION 2020

8
7
6

5
4
3
2
1

1 2 3 4 5

43. A belt-drive used for power transmission between two parallel shafts has a belt of mass 1.2
kg/m, and the maximum allowable belt tension is 2250 N. If the centrifugal tension is one
third of the maximum allowable belt tension, the speed at which maximum power is
transmitted by the belt, in m/s, is

a. 25.00 b. 46.48 c. 38.73 d. 35.36

Ans. a
TC
Sol:
A
r

dθ
PC
B

TC

AB = rdθ
Mass of belt M = Mrdθ

Centrifugal force Pc = =

⇒ PC = mdθv2

⇒ 2𝑇 𝑆𝑖𝑛 = 𝑚𝑑𝜃 𝑣

⇒2𝑇 × = 𝑚𝑑𝜃 × 𝑣 ∵ 𝑆𝑖𝑛 ≈

⇒ TC = mv2

⇒ 𝑁 = (1.2 𝑘𝑔/𝑚) × 𝑣
 GATE MINING SOLUTION 2020

⇒v= × .
= 25 𝑚/𝑠

44. An underground copper mine sends 2500 tonnes of ore per day to the concentrator plant
having an average grade of 1.2% Cu. The plant produces concentrate of 25.0% Cu with a
recovery of 93.0%. The solids portion of tailings generated from theplant per day in tonnes is
_____________(round off to 1 decimal place).
Ans. 2388.39tn
%
Sol: Conc. factor = . %× %
= 22.4𝑡𝑛

22.4 tn produce → 1tn conc

2500 tn produces → 111.61tn conc.
tailing produced = 2500 – 111.61 = 2388.39 tn

45. The geometry of a simple planar curve (ADB) is shown below. The value of the mid-ordinate
of the curve in m is _________ (round off to 1 decimal place).

Ans. 250m

Sol: Mid – ordinate R (1 – cos θ/2)

°
= 500 × (1 − cos ) = 250 𝑚

46. A parallelepiped has edge vectors as shown below.

𝐴⃗ = −4𝚤̂ − 10𝚥̂ − 𝑘

𝐵⃗ = 7𝚤̂ + 9𝚥̂ − 2𝑘

𝐶⃗ = 3𝚤̂ + 9𝚥̂ + 4𝑘
The volume of the parallelepiped is ________ (round off to 1 decimal place).
 GATE MINING SOLUTION 2020

Ans. 88
−4 −10 −1
Sol: 7 9 −2
3 9 4
=-4(36 + 18) + 10 (28 + 6) – 1 (63 - 27)
= -216 + 340 – 36 = 88
47. Air enters from ambient atmosphere into a level duct of uniform cross-section area 0.2
m2 at a flow rate of 2.0 m3/s and density of 1.2 kg/m3. The entry shock loss factor is
1.0 and the resistance of the duct per meter length is 1.0 Ns2/m8. The static pressure
measured at a distance of 20 m from the duct entrance in Pa, is ___________ (round
off to 1 decimal place)
Ans. 80 Pa

Sol:

0.2 m2 2 m3/s ρair = 1.2 kg/m3

x=1

R = 1 Ns2/m8

R = 1 × 20 = 20 Ns2m-8

Static pressure = RQ2 = 20 × (2)2 = 80 Pa

48. An assignment problem is given below with the

cost of assignment as shown.
If only one task can be assigned to one group, the
minimum cost of assignment is ___________.
Ans. 18

Sol:

T1 T2 T3 T4
G1 6 10 5 4
G2 4 100 6 4
G3 6 9 6 2
 GATE MINING SOLUTION 2020

G4 3 7 6 4

(1)

2 6 1 0
0 96 2 0
4 7 4 0
0 4 3 1

(2)

2 2 0 0
0 92 1 0
4 3 3 0

0 0 2 1

5 + 4 + 2 + 7 = 18

49. A particle starting from rest moves in a straight line such that after time, t(seconds), the
acceleration becomes (6 – t/4) cm/s2.. When the acceleration becomes zero, thevelocity of
the particle in cm/s is ___________ (round off to 1 decimal place).

Ans. 72 m/s

Sol: 𝑎= => 6 = ⇒ 𝑡 = 24

V = ∫ 𝑎𝑑𝑡 = 6𝑡 −

( )
V = 24 × 6 − = 72 𝑚/𝑠

50. A surface mine production system along with the reliability of the individual components is
shown below. The system reliability is _____________(round off to 3 decimal places).
 GATE MINING SOLUTION 2020

Ans. 0.539

Sol: The system reliability = 0.9 × 0.8 × [1-(1-0.6)3]×0.8

= 0.539

51. A diesel loader produces 60 l/s of exhaust fumes containing 5000 ppm of CO. The incoming
air has 10 ppm of CO. The minimum amount of air flow in m3/s that is needed at the loader
to dilute CO to a permissible level of 50 ppm is ___________(round off to 1 decimal place).

Ans. 7.425

Qg , M
Sol:
Q, Bg Qt , VL

Qt = Q + Qg

QgM + Q × Bg = (Q + Qg) VL

⇒ Q (Bg – VL) = Qg × (VL – M)

×( ) . ( ) . ×
⇒Q= = ( )
= = 7.425

52. For w = , the value of is

𝟐𝒆𝒕 (𝒕𝟐 𝟏) 𝟐𝒆𝒕 (𝒕𝟐 𝟏) 𝟐𝒆𝒕 (𝒕 𝟏) 𝟐𝒆𝒕 (𝒕 𝟏)

a. (𝒆𝒕 𝒕𝟐)𝟐
b. (𝒆𝒕 𝒕𝟐 )𝟐
c. (𝒆𝒕 𝒕)𝟐
d. (𝒆𝒕 𝒕)𝟐

Ans. d

53. For the differential equation 𝑦√1 − 𝑥 𝑑𝑦 + 𝑥 1 − 𝑦 𝑑𝑥 = 0, assuming the constant of

integration to be C, the general solution is
𝟏 𝟏
a. + =𝑪 b. √𝟏 − 𝒙 + 𝟏 − 𝒚 = 𝑪
𝟏 𝒙𝟐 𝟏 𝒚𝟐
 GATE MINING SOLUTION 2020

c. 𝒚√𝟏 − 𝒙𝟐 + 𝒙 𝟏 − 𝒚𝟐 = 𝑪 d. √𝟏 − 𝒙𝟐 + 𝟏 − 𝒚𝟐 = 𝑪

Ans. d

Sol: 𝑦√1 − 𝑥 𝑑𝑦 + 𝑥 1 − 𝑦 𝑑𝑥 = 0

𝑦√1 − 𝑥 𝑑𝑦 = −𝑥 1 − 𝑦 𝑑𝑥

𝑑𝑦 = 𝑑𝑥
√

Put 1 – y2 = t

-2ydy = dt

ydy =

Put 1 – x2 = m

xdx =

/ = /

/ /
=
/ /

−2√𝑡 = 2√𝑚 + 𝐶

√𝑡 + √𝑚 = 𝐶

√1 − 𝑥 + 1 − 𝑦 = 𝐶

54. Two underground mines are separated by a horizontal coal barrier of 60 m thickness. One
mine is inundated, whereas the other mine has a blind heading of dimensions 4.0 m wide and
2.5 m height terminating at the barrier. The overall in-situ shear strength of the coal
mass is 500 kPa. Assume that the failure mode is in shear. At a factor of safety of 10, the
maximum water head that can be withstood by the coal barrier, in m, is __________
(round off to 1 decimal place).

Ans. 5.097

Sol:

Fos = strength / stress

10 = 500 kpa / (h x rho x g) h = 5.09

 GATE MINING SOLUTION 2020

55. The slip circle of radius 30.0 m in an overburden slope is shown with the centre of slip circle
at point O. The tension crack is completely filled with water. For one meter width of the

slope, the moment exerted by the force of water about O in kN-m is __________(round off
to 1 decimal place).

Ans. 3392.667 kNm

Sol.

Now,

Water force acting 1 to plane

= Pavg × Area

= 1/2 × T × g × h × (h × width)
 GATE MINING SOLUTION 2020

= 1/2 × 1000 × 9.81 × 6 × (6 × 1) =

176,580N

Now,

oc = 30 sin 45

= = 15√2𝑚
√

ox = oc – 2m = 15√2 − 2 𝑚

So, moment = F × d

= 176580 × (15√2 − 2) =3392.667 kNm

-------------------------------------------------END OF PAPER-------------------------------------------
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