ROLE OF ENGINEERING PROPERTIES OF

ROCK IN EXCAVATION SYSTEM DESIGN

V.M.S.R. Murthy
Professor
Department of Mining Engineering
Indian Institute of Technology (Indian School of Mines), Dhanbad
Excavatability and it’s dependence

n  hardness of its constituent minerals.

n  grain size coarse-grained structure is easier to cut

n  crystal form. minerals with high symmetry

n  abrasive

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Macroscopic properties

n  slatiness
n  fissuring

n  contact zones

n  layering

n  veining

n  inclination

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Rocks and classification

n  Igneous or magmatic rocks (formed from

solidified lava or "magma").
n  Sedimentary rocks (formed by deposition of
broken material or by chemical precipitation).
n  Metamorphic rocks (formed by the transformation
of igneous or sedimentary rocks, in most cases by an
increase in pressure and heat).

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Igneous rock

n  Depending on whether the magma solidifies at

depth, or as a dyke rock, or on the surface, the
rock is given different names even if the
composition is the same.
n  plutonic rock: magma solidifies deep down in the
earth's crust.
n  dyke rock: magma rises towards the surface.
n  volcanic rock: on the surface.

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 Igneous Rocks

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Sedimentary rocks

n  deposition of material by mechanical or chemical

action and a consolidation of this material under
the pressure of overlying layers.
n  also arise as a result of the chemical
precipitation of minerals or by proliferation of
organic organisms

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 Metamorphic rocks

n  effects of chemical action or increased

pressure and/or temperature on a rock
formation can sometimes be so great that
it produces a transformation.
n  recrystallization of the mineral grains

n  formation of new minerals

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 Rock classification on DRI BASIS

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 Rock Strength(UCS) under creep

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 Fracture Mechanics

n  strength of brittle materials is their ability to

break by crack propagation.
n  tensile strength of these materials is so much
lower than the compressive strength.
n  stress concentration in front of the crack tip
n  stress intensity factor KI is a function of the
crack length and the load σo

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 The critical value of KI when the crack just starts moving is a
material constant KIC.

The work done per unit new crack

surface is GIC which is coupled to KIC through the relation:

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 Fracture toughness values

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 Stress-strain in different formations

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Abrasiveness
The factors that enhance abrasive capacities of rocks are the
following:
• The hardness of the grains of the rock. The rocks that
contain quartz grains are highly abrasive.
• The shape of the grains. Those that are angular are more
abrasive than the round ones.
• The size of the grains.
• The porosity of the rock. It gives rough contact surfaces with
local stress concentrations.
• The heterogeneity. Poly mineral rocks, although these are
equally hard, are more abrasive because they leave rough
surfaces with hard grains as, for example, quartz grains in a
granite.

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Rock Mass Strength and Structure

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Rock Breaking Processes

n  Primary

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Examples:

n  Impact or hammering.

n  Percussive drilling.
n  Button type cutters for raise and tunnel
borers
n  Disc type cutters for raise and tunnel borers.
n  Drag –bit.
n  Diamond bits.

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 Theory

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 Secondary Breakage

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 Energy in breaking process

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 Miscellaneous breaking mechanisms

n  Thermal spalling

n  Water jets.

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 Cutting tools and Parameters

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 Excavatability of Rock

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